


Solstice and Everything After

by silverstone2828



Series: Postcards from Prythian [6]
Category: A Court of Thorns and Roses Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-07-16
Packaged: 2020-06-26 15:46:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 52,522
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19771390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silverstone2828/pseuds/silverstone2828
Summary: Life is changing for our heroes, but not without their fair share of angst.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Credit for the universe belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

Two days before Rhys was scheduled to arrive for his Solstice visit, Feyre went in to work a half hour early. She had carefully chosen her outfit so that it was decent for work; the skirt she chose was rather short in style and tended to ride up when she sat, however. _Just right_ , she thought as she went to the equipment cabinet in the Audio-Visual department to borrow a camera tripod.

Returning to her desk, she set the tripod up and mounted her phone to it, having opened the camera app on it. She checked the view in the view finder, made some adjustments, and when she was satisfied, she cleared her desk and demurely sat just on the edge with her ankles crossed, grinning. She pressed the remote button and took a few shots, most of which did what she intended, then rose and returned the tripod to its cabinet and restored her desk to its work appearance.

After Feyre had made coffee for Alis and herself and had checked their calendars and prepped their days, she took a small break and checked her photos, choosing the shot she felt would be most effective. She texted just the photo to Rhys with no accompanying text, knowing full well that, while he would get the point of it right away, there was enough plausible deniability that few others would, so it was safe enough even if one or the other of them lost their phone. Then she started watching the clock to see if her text had the desired effect.

Sure enough, at 15 seconds, her phone chimed with the text notification. Feyre laughed and checked the incoming text. 'Fuck, Feyre. Even **I** never went **there**! You and your wild Adriata ways are going to be the death of me. And this morning, that's going to be painful!'

A few seconds later, another text came through to her phone. This one sounded even more desperate. 'Is there anyplace at the airport for us to do our thing? I have a meeting in five minutes and it would help immeasurably to know that I can get this little problem I have solved as soon as I get off the plane. Otherwise, I may have some explaining to do at the meeting. Have mercy, **please**!'

Feyre's response was an audio text: 'No, Prick, nothing but wide open spaces at the airport, I'm afraid. Horny much? Join the club. It's called delayed gratification. Look it up. My picture is there, too,' she said in a sultry voice while laughing.

Rhys' reply was audio as well. 'Cruel, beautiful female. Just wait, then, Feyre Darling, because payback **is** coming, and in your immortal favorite phrase, 'It'll be awesome; I guarantee it.' Think about your payback for the rest of today, love, and just try to get something businesslike accomplished, hmmm? I'm holding you responsible for my glazed-eyes condition at this meeting. Love you, gotta run, but we are not finished with this discussion.'

Feyre texted back a very big grin emoji, texted that she loved him too, and locked her phone. _Mission accomplished,_ she thought as she continued her busy day. The next two days were hectic ones for both Feyre and Rhys, each one trying to wrap up as much business as they could before Solstice and Feyre's vacation. Alis would be hosting them for her traditional Solstice brunch which also honored Feyre's birthday, they would spend another day in Adriata, then fly to Velaris for a late Solstice celebration with Rhys' family. Together, she and Rhys had accomplished two weeks of work over the last week before Solstice, but the thought of spending so much free time together fueled their drive to get it done.

Finally, it was Solstice Eve, and Feyre was waiting for Rhys at the airport in her usual spot to the side of the exit door he always took. _Hair and makeup, check,_ she thought. _Gifts for everyone in Velaris wrapped and stowed in the extra suitcase. Rhys' special little gift all ready to go. Ticket to and from Velaris all set. Food in the house. I think we're ready,_ she happily concluded.

Shortly thereafter, passengers began streaming through the door again as Rhys' flight disgorged its passengers. Rhys wasn't with them as he'd texted Feyre and told her that he would have to wait for a checked bag, but she could feel her anticipation for his arrival rise even farther when she saw his fellow passengers. It wasn't all that long before Rhys and Feyre were enveloping each other in bear hugs and deep, longing kisses.

“You're **sure** there's nowhere here we can have a quickie?,” Rhys asked plaintively.

“That's the question you're going with the moment you see me? Seriously? You don't want a do-over?,” Feyre asked with an arched eyebrow and a big smile. “Maybe I can get us a room in an airport hotel, but I have to warn you that they're all likely full considering that Solstice is tomorrow. C'mon, lover; you're tough enough to get by for a little while longer. Let's go home.” She picked up the smaller of his bags and moved toward the airport exit as Rhys quietly whimpered and picked up his larger bag.

Traffic was light on the route Feyre used to drive to her town house so they were there in half an hour. After depositing Rhys' bags in her bedroom, he pulled her in to his chest and just took her scent in for a few moments, settling himself. Feyre leaned up to kiss him deeply, moving her hands slowly up and down his back. “Gods, I've missed you so much,” she breathed.

“I know the feeling very well,” Rhys answered with a small smirk. “And not just this,” he said as he cupped a breast, massaging it lightly. “Though that **is** fairly high on my list of things that I miss when we're apart. Just not at the very top.

“I have your sweats and a tee shirt in the bath,” Feyre announced, “changing the subject only a little bit. What would you think about sharing a shower?,” she asked with a perfectly straight face.

Rhys was already moving them to the bath, unbuttoning his shirt with his free arm as they went.

“I'll take that as a 'yes,' Feyre said, smiling up at him. “Your favorite part seems to concur, so that's helpful,” she smirked, gesturing toward his hardening groin.

“You're overdressed for this event,” was all he said as he stopped them and removed her top with gentle hands. He bent down to her breasts and gently kissed her nipples as he massaged each one reverently.

Feyre was breathing more heavily as she finished removing Rhys' clothing and stripped off her jeans and underwear. She turned on the shower and they entered it together, shampooing and washing each other with great care. Once clean, they moved into each other's embrace and loved each other slowly and sweetly. “I needed you so very much,” Rhys breathed into Feyre's hair, inhaling her scent. “Me, too, love. Me, too,” Feyre responded.

Following their shower, they went downstairs where Feyre laid out a dinner of takeout food from Rhys' favorite seafood restaurant. This time, they ate one-handed, each holding the other's hand throughout the meal. Both had come to the same conclusion in the past month: living in two cities was becoming too painful to bear if they didn't have to do it.

After picking up the kitchen, Rhys and Feyre moved into Feyre's sitting room where they cuddled on the davenport while pretending to watch a movie. Feyre asked him if Azriel had decided for certain what he planned to do and how the staffing was going for the new development division as well as an IT director.

“Az said that he wanted to try your plan, having talked to people in the departments to see if they had any objections. They seemed pleased to have him join teams, so it seems settled, at least for now. He and I have had a few more talks since the blowup, all of them constructive and I think we're in a much better place, certainly professionally, but also personally. Even if he eventually finds another job elsewhere that better suits him, I'm in a much better place mentally to accept it and to help him move on if he needs any help.

“That's due to you, love, and all of us owe you a great deal for facilitating it in your oh-so-competent and understated way. You surely impressed Amren all to hell, I tell you!,” Rhys said with a laugh. “That isn't easy to do, and I will head you off at the pass because I can practically hear you protesting right now: Amren wouldn't bother trying to tell me anything about you just because of our relationship,” he said while gesturing between Feyre and himself. “She just doesn't do that and she doesn't have a reason to do it, not when it concerns the business. And, remember the family dinner at Sevenda's? She said you're in the family so far as she is concerned, and that you stay in the family, no matter what. Her words,” he reminded Feyre. “Anyway, I just wanted you to know, love, that we're all grateful to you."

Feyre hugged him as Rhys continued. “On the staffing, that's moving along. Mostly we'll be promoting from within and replacing those promoted people from within so far as management is concerned.There are some outside hires, but they're for lower positions. Azriel has agreed to train both the new IT manager and the new Software Development manager. He has his notes for both the new managers in good shape, so that's a good resource for them as well as his training efforts. There won't be a lot of changes in how the divisions are structured or in how they do their jobs, so after a training period, Az can then settle into his own teams.”

“Good,” Feyre murmured. “I'm very glad if I helped at all; your family has become very important to me, so I want you all to be happy, first of all, and I want your business to run smoothly for the sake of all of you, but especially for your sake.” She leaned up and kissed him gently.

They returned their attention to the movie, spending a quiet rest of the evening.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

Rhys and Feyre slowly awoke on Solstice morning to a sunny Adriata sky. The weather would be cool for Adriata, it being winter, but gorgeous to Rhys, since he was visiting from cold, snowy Velaris. They languidly stretched and cuddled back together, murmuring softly of small things and beginning to plan their day. They had Alis' brunch to anticipate, of course, and Rhys had given Feyre a grocery shopping list of items he needed to make her a birthday feast that evening. They were seriously considering not putting anything else on the schedule.

“If we leave the day open, you can play with your birthday and Solstice gifts,” Rhys teased.

“There's one gift I hope to get that would take me all day long to figure out,” Feyre teased back. “Sadly, if I were to get that gift, it would have to wait until we get back from the brunch—we slept through my play time for this morning.”

“I don't understand? I see no gifts here,” Rhys said, smirking hugely. One of his best smirks ever, truly.

“True,” Feyre replied. “That's all for the best—you gave me the gift of sleeping in, but now it's time for a quick shower and we can have a cup of coffee before leaving for Alis' place.”

“I'll go make the coffee while you take your shower, then,” said Rhys. “Leave just a little hot water so I can take a quick shower when you finish?”

“That's no problem—I don't need to wash my hair this morning, so there will be plenty of hot water.” With that, Feyre took a last stretch against Rhys' tall body, giving him her own best smirk as she left the bed and went to the bath. Rhys just groaned and told her yet again that she'd be the death of him if she kept that up. Laughter echoed from the bath as the door closed.

Meeting downstairs in Feyre's kitchen, they came together taking in each other's scent and kissed deeply before Rhys went upstairs to shower and dress for the day. Alis' brunch would be casual, so Feyre was wearing a new turquoise silk long sleeved tunic, navy blue leggings and navy blue flat sandals. She had braided her hair following the shower and wore only light makeup, mainly just eye shadow, mascara, a little blush, and dark pink lip gloss.

Rhys had poured her coffee and it was waiting for her on the kitchen table, so Feyre grabbed her phone and sat down to send Happy Solstice texts to the Inner Circle and her friends in Adriata. She found several texts waiting for her, ranging from Amren's beautifully crafted Solstice message written on a background image of the snowy Illyrian mountains to Cassian's video offering of he and Azriel singing an off-color holiday song, and a few others between those two extremes.

Feyre had already figured out how she wanted to craft each of her planned Solstice texts for each person, so it didn't take her long to create and send them. After she had finished them and her coffee, she rose and went to her hall closet where she gathered her Solstice gifts for Alis and Alis' nephews, Bart and Bret. Being ages seven and five respectively, Rhys and Feyre had gone together on one large gift for the boys: two handheld gaming consoles and a few games specific to the boys' interest and abilities. She had gotten approval from Alis ahead of time for all of their choices, so she hoped it would please the boys.

For Alis, she had painted and framed a portrait of Alis and her nephews on a small Summer Region beach, collecting sea shells. The sight of the sun-browned boys warmed Feyre's heart and she hoped Alis would like it. In addition, she had gotten Alis a year's subscription to a coffee of the month service, giving her a new gourmet coffee to try each month, as well as a pastel blue patterned silk scarf. Rhys had brought Alis a gorgeous gold link bracelet he'd found in the Palace of Thread and Jewels in Velaris.

Alis refused to let Feyre bring anything to the brunch, so, after gathering the gifts she and Rhys needed to take with them, Feyre moved around the townhouse, picking it up and cleaning the coffee things. As she was finishing this chore, Rhys came downstairs carrying a large wrapped gift. Feyre looked up in surprise, as he approached her.

“I thought we agreed to exchange Solstice gifts in Velaris with the family?,” she asked.

“We did,” Rhys readily responded. “There's the not so small matter of your birthday, love. You may ignore it, but I didn't want to do that.”

Feyre could feel the blush rising on her cheeks. “We love each other, Rhys—that's the best gift I could have in any year for any reason.”

“You get that anyway, as do I. I do have a question, though,” Rhys said. “Would you rather open it at Alis' place with the other gifts or wait until we get back here to open it?”

“I think I'd rather open it later, if it's okay with you,” Feyre replied. “I won't get to play with it until we come home and you promised I could play with my presents, so it's best if I don't even know what it is yet. Then I won't know what I'm missing. Would you mind?,” she asked.

“No, that's fine, probably a good idea, actually, Feyre Darling. You know we'll lose Bart and Bret as soon as they open their gifts. I would hate to explain to Alis why we've lost you, too,” he smiled as he spoke. “Though I understand the boys' position. I've been known to while away the better part of whole days making significant progress in a good video game.”

Feyre flipped him off and merely said, “I might remember your reticence to explain to Alis a perfectly normal reaction to opening a gift, Prick. We should leave soon. I'd hate to mess up Alis' brunch.”

Rhys deposited Feyre's birthday gift near the TV set, then grabbed his phone. He was casually dressed in a black silky soft tee shirt, black jeans, and black sneakers, so he thought he wouldn't be out of place at the gathering. They put on very light jackets, then Rhys picked up the bag of gifts and Feyre took the wrapped painting, threw her purse over her shoulder, and they were on their way to Alis' home in a nearby neighborhood of larger homes and manicured yards. Children were playing outside in several of the yards as they slowly drove by. A form of soccer seemed to be the most commonly played game and the children, and occasionally an adult, were clearly enjoying themselves.

Feyre parked in front of a stately red brick home with lavish tropical greenery dominating the landscaping. A large hibiscus bush was in full bloom, welcoming visitors and passersby alike with bright reddish orange blooms. Rhys and Feyre each grabbed their share of bags and knocked on the front door, just a few minutes before Alis had asked them to arrive. The door flew open and a lively Bret flew into Feyre, hugging her and telling her how much he'd missed her.

“You missed me that whole amount ever since I saw you last weekend?,” Feyre asked him seriously. “I'm so sorry; I missed you and Bart, too. We'll have a good time today to make up for it, all right? Meanwhile, I want to introduce you to Rhys who is visiting me. Rhys, this is Bart and Bret; young males, this is Rhys. Shall we go in and find Alis?,”

The males told Rhys that they were pleased to meet him and gravely extended their hands to shake Rhys' much larger hand, then the holiday spirit got the better of them and they turned and hurtled inside, calling for Alis.

“Hi Rhys; I'm so glad you're here and I hope you're having a wonderful few days in Adriata, as well as a happy Solstice!” Alis had come to the door from the kitchen as her nephews called out for her. She gave Rhys a hug and peck on the cheek.

Rhys smiled broadly at her and thanked her for including him in her holiday brunch. “It couldn't be a better holiday, Alis. I'm having a great time, thanks.

“And Feyre, How lovely to have you here. It's been all of a day since we talked?,” Alis joked as she welcomed Feyre with a hug and kiss.

Feyre returned the sentiment, wished Alis a happy Solstice, then asked where they might put the gifts.

“I think in the living room would be best for now, maybe by the Solstice tree?,” Alis told her. As Feyre and Rhys turned into the living room to deposit the gifts, Alis asked, ”Shall we go into the dining room?”

Everyone continued down the entry hall to the dining room where an array of delicious aromas struck them and both Feyre and Rhys felt their mouths begin to water. “I thought a spinach and cheese quiche might be nice this year,” said Alis.

“That sounds excellent to me,” Feyre said innocently. “And you all will be having...?”

“Here we go,” said Alis, smiling as the young males looked at Feyre questioningly.

“You know that Alis only let us have fruit and yogurt this morning, right?,” Bart asked Feyre seriously.

“Oh, wonderful,” commented Feyre with a wide smile. “I'm so glad you had such a good breakfast! You got more than Rhys did, and he's going to have to sit and watch me eat the whole, entire quiche,” Feyre said with a slow wink at Alis' nephews.

“She's joking, Bart,” said Bret, the more outgoing of the brothers. “She always winks when she's joking.”

Feyre gave both boys a hug and told them they knew her too well and they all sat down at the table and spent a pleasant hour eating quiche, croissants, and melon and talking about the gifts that the young males had received already.

Alis told Feyre and Rhys how much she liked the lightweight powder blue sweater and book Feyre had helped her nephews get for her. She remarked that she had heard that the lunch they'd had at the shopping center's food court was the high point of the day for her nephews. “Or maybe it was the two hours you spent at the gaming center. It's a tossup. Anyway, they had a wonderful day.”

Feyre looked fondly at Bart and Bret, saying, “Yeah, that was a pretty cool day, wasn't it?”

Both males nodded enthusiastically, telling her that they'd do it again any time she wanted to do it.

The adults laughed and sent the males off to play for a few minutes while they finished eating and picked up the kitchen and dining room. Rhys told Alis that her nephews were fine young males and that she could be proud of them. Alis told him that her nephews were a delight and that she was, indeed, very proud of them.

Soon everyone gathered in the living room for coffee and to open gifts. Rhys and Feyre sat on the davenport, holding hands, and Alis joined them, leaving the wing chairs for Bart and Bret. Given the nature of young children, even though Alis, Bart, and Bret had opened gifts earlier in the morning, the adults let them open Feyre and Rhys' gifts to them first. As hoped for, the gaming systems and games were a huge success with both boys and they thanked Feyre and Rhys very politely for the gear. They had gotten each of them extra controllers, expansion game cards, and portable chargers for all the gear so that the males could take them on longer trips as well. They immediately set about carefully unpacking the gaming systems, accessories, and games, talking excitedly among themselves as they worked.

That left the adults to more leisurely open their gifts. Alis loved her new scarf from Feyre which was gorgeous with her new sweater from her nephews and she immediately put on her bracelet from Rhys. She announced that she couldn't wait for the first installment of her coffee subscription, and thanked Rhys and Feyre for her gifts.

Feyre received a complete set of sable paint brushes for her birthday as well as a set of rare paints imported from the Continent. “I went to your favorite art store and had them raid your wish list,” Alis said. “If we picked incorrectly, they told me to tell you that you can exchange them for other things you might prefer.”

“No, these are just perfect,” Feyre breathed. “I was going to get these things piece by piece, so I'm overwhelmed to get them all at once. Thank you so much!”

“Paint something that makes you happy. Knowing you've done that will be all the thanks I need,” Alis replied.

Rhys opened a box containing a black leather folder and a pocket-sized black leather notebook, both engraved in silver with his initials and a small copy of Feyre's rendition of Ramiel surrounded by three stars beneath the letters. He gulped and thanked Alis profusely, telling her that he would treasure them always.

“I talked it over with Feyre and she suggested adding Ramiel and the three stars to the initials. It seemed a like great idea, so I took her design to the store and they did it,” commented Alis.

Feyre handed Alis her final gift and watched carefully as she unwrapped it. This was the first painting she had given Alis. Alis slowly unwrapped it and when she saw the painting in full, her eyes filled with tears and she carefully set it down before enveloping Feyre in a hug.

“This is the best gift I could have gotten from you, aside from you being here this morning,” Alis said, getting her emotions under control. “You have captured us perfectly, Feyre. It will always have a place in my home!”

Feyre told her that she was very welcome and that she was so pleased that Alis liked it. Rhys had gotten down on the floor with the boys and soon the three of them were deeply involved in the games. Alis and Feyre went to the kitchen to make more coffee, engaging in small talk.

“I so rarely see you and Rhys together,” Alis commented as the coffee was brewing. “You are truly happy with him, aren't you? Happy, and you give the impression of being settled when I see you with him. Like you've found the person you're meant to be with, and you know it, at least subconsciously.”

“Yes, Alis, I finally am happy. We've made no concrete plans for a long term future, but day by day, our relationship deepens. As to him being the one I was **meant** to be with, I don't know what I think of that idea. I need to have a long talk with you some weekend day about it and and tell you about some research I've been doing. Rhys knows all about the research, and we've discussed it ourselves,” Feyre hastened to add. “It's actually research he suggested that I do into the Night Region and the Illyrian culture in the time frame of a thousand years ago. Some things have come up in the research and it would help me if I could talk to you about it sometime.”

“Anytime, Feyre. We'll sit the males down with their new toys and games and have our talk, all right?”

Feyre agreed, much relieved to have someone outside of Rhys and his family to talk with in order to gain some perspective from a more objective person on her research and what it was telling her.

The fresh coffee had finished brewing so Alis and Feyre took it into the living room, as well as juice for Alis' nephews. All three males thanked them absentmindedly for their drinks, thoroughly absorbed in their video games. Alis and Feyre settled down on the davenport and continued their small talk for another hour until the males had reached a good stopping point in their games.

This seemed a good time for Rhys and Feyre to return to Feyre's home, so all of them thanked each other again, hugged each other goodbye, and the small males helped bring Rhys and Feyre's gifts out to Feyre's car. After a last wave, they returned home in plenty of time to allow Rhys time to rest and recover from his intense video gaming before he began preparing Feyre's birthday/Solstice dinner.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

“Now can I open my birthday gift?,” Feyre asked after they'd hung their jackets on the coat tree and deposited their gifts by the davenport.

“Very soon,” Rhys promised. “First, I want a sound kiss and possibly a big hug, if you're feeling generous, Feyre Darling.”

Feyre stuck her tongue out at him and walked to the large wrapped package. “Priorities, my love. You must learn, as any executive should, how to set priorities.”

Rhys walked over to her and put his arms around her gently from behind, kissing the top of her head while he inhaled her scent. Feyre cooperatively turned around in his arms and put her arms around him. Rhys quietly said, “I **have** set a priority. **You're** the priority.” He leaned down and kissed her deeply as her arms tightened around him.

“Mmmm,” Feyre groaned softly, as her hands roamed under his shirt, feeling his muscles ripple as she touched him. “You **are** making this difficult. “I'm trying to make a stand here, but I'm thinking I lost this battle already,” she smirked.

“Possibly so,” Rhys answered, “but I'm gratified that you recognized it so quickly—it gives us more time for other things.”

“I saved us a little bit of time already,” Feyre announced. “I'm not wearing any undergarments. On purpose.”

“Gods of the Cauldron preserve me!,” Rhys exclaimed. “You've been holding that knowledge all day? How am I supposed to survive all the shocks you insist on delivering?,” he asked rhetorically.

Again Feyre stuck out her tongue, willing him to catch it as he did once before—and he did, both of them kissing deeply and their tongues dancing. They slowly moved upstairs where they pleasured each other thoroughly and then napped for a short while, waking in time for them to begin cooking dinner.

On coming downstairs, Feyre finally got to open her gift with Rhys watching her carefully. He'd gotten her a portable art carrier suitable for carrying art supplies on airplanes or in cars because he was hoping to encourage her to spend some of her time in Velaris painting if she wanted. Inside the case, she found an array of materials ready for use, all of them of professional quality. There were leather-bound sketch books of different sizes and a leather-bound art journal, all with soft, thick paper crying out to be filled. Her initials, as she styled them on her paintings, were engraved in gold on each piece. He'd included a new set of every sort of drawing and sketching pencil she would ever need, erasers, sharpeners, as well as fine-point drawing pens in case she needed to accent something. There were several palettes for use with her painting as well as paints and underlay materials, and even a couple of canvases. The paints and brushes Alis gave her would fit nicely in the storage areas of the case, he noted.

Feyre looked up at him, stunned. “How did you know what I wanted more than anything?' she asked. “The paper in the books is is to die for, Rhys. I can do so much with this! You have no idea how grateful I am,” she said, rising to hug him. She calmed herself for a moment in his arms.

“I've wanted to watch you paint in Velaris for a long time,” he said, “so I went to an art store a friend of Azriel owns; her name is Ressina. I think you'd like her and I think you'd adore her store. We can meet her sometime, if you like; the store is in the Rainbow. Anyway, I had mentioned to Azriel what I wanted to do in September and he suggested that I should get some ideas for the project from Ressina, so I went to her store one Saturday and ended up getting a lot of this that day. She called periodically to see if you'd be interested in some new arrival item or another, and, for the most part, I thought you might be. She wanted to see some of your work, so Mor took the painting you did for her and my Stars Eternal painting over to show Ressina one weekend when I was down here; I hope you don't mind, love. It helped her decide what we should include. She told both Mor and me how impressive your work is—she loves your use of light and color, if that means something to you?"

Feyre was fighting a blush and the feeling of embarrassment that arose from having her work shown to a stranger. She stopped herself, thinking, _It's really no different than people seeing it in Mor and Andi's home or in Rhys' office. Relax; it wasn't as though Ressina did a full critique of it._ _And Rhys is right in that knowing what I did would help them choose products._ With that thought, she calmed down and explained what Ressina was talking about and told him that she would love to meet Ressina sometime.

Feyre picked up one of the sketch books, her new pencils and pens, and a sharpener and took them to the kitchen table. Following a light late lunch of cold cuts, cheeses, and bread along with iced tea, Feyre sketched her Rhys cooking while he made dinner. They were both utterly content: they were together and they were both doing something creative that they loved to do.

“Since you bought all those Illyrian spices, I thought I'd make you the Illyrian dish my mom always made for Solstice,” Rhys said. “I hope you'll like it.”

Feyre looked up from her sketch. “You had me at 'Illyrian spices,'” she drawled. “I'm sure that I will. Can I help you? Chop anything for you or make a salad, whatever you need that you think I can manage?”

“Actually, yes. If you could chop the mushrooms, onion, celery, and carrots, that would help,” Rhys said. Then we can make the salad together, if you wouldn't mind.”

“Not at all,” Feyre replied, setting down her her sketch book and pencil. She gracefully rose and found her good kitchen knife and cutting board, then took it to a counter Rhys wasn't using. She gathered the needed vegetables and asked Rhys how finely she should chop them, then began the project.

Rhys browned the chicken breasts, then, while they were resting, sauteed the mushrooms, then sauteed the remainder of the vegetables while he measured the long grain and wild rice and prepared the cream sauce that would garnish the rice and vegetables. After mixing together the rice, the needed water for it to absorb in the cooking process, Illyrian spices, and the vegetables in the cooking pan, he then placed the chicken breasts on top of the mixture, put a lid on the pan, and set it to simmer over low heat until the rice had absorbed the water.

They companionably made a green salad and sliced some fruit, then set the dinner table. Feyre took her drawing things back to the sitting room to keep them safe from food spatters. Rhys had put the salad dressing and condiments on the table by the salad and fruit while she was in the sitting room, so Feyre got their bread ready and got them ice water to drink while Rhys was finishing his dish. After it had simmered the proper length of time, he'd removed the chicken breasts to a platter, then stirred most of the cream sauce into the rice mixture. The remainder of the sauce was drizzled over the chicken breasts, along with a dusting of spices. He dished the rice mixture into a serving bowl and took the bowl and platter to the table along with serving utensils.

“Does it look like we have everything?,” Rhys asked.

“It certainly does to me,” Feyre answered. “It all looks and smells heavenly!”

They sat down and served themselves. As she usually did with Illyrian food, Feyre simply closed her eyes and spent a moment taking the scents in, while Rhys watched her lovingly. _I love watching her enjoying Illyrian food,_ he thought. _It seems to really make her happy to be able to have it. “_ Thanks to you buying all those Illyrian spices to use for kitchen potpourri,” Rhys said, “I had what I needed so that this should have turned out pretty well. We never had leftovers when Mom made this for Solstice.”

“I'm sure you didn't,” Feyre remarked. “I think we won't tonight, either, which is good because we only have tomorrow to finish the food up before we leave for Velaris. Nothing perishable would be good after my time there unless we freeze it. Do you think the cream sauce would freeze well?”

“Probably not,” Rhys answered, “but, as I said, I never dealt with it. I don't think we need to overeat tonight, though. We can arrange to save enough to have for lunch or dinner tomorrow.”

“That sounds good,” said Feyre. “Just in case we need to do it. This is sooo good, Rhys. Thank you so much!”

“You're very welcome, Feyre. I enjoyed doing it and I loved having your help.”

“My pleasure entirely, Rhys. I excel at washing dishes, though, so I'll start that while you rest, all right? Do you want more ice water or something else to drink?”

“I'll get some ice water in a minute,” he said. I'm just going to use the bath and will be back in a moment.”

Feyre nodded and turned to her chores. After putting the leftovers in the refrigerator for them to have tomorrow, she turned her attention to the dishes and loaded most of them into the dishwasher. She hand washed the few remaining dishes and wiped off all the counters, then cleaned the dinner table and put the condiments away. Rhys had returned and dried the dishes Feyre had washed, so they put them away and returned to the sitting room with their ice water and their phones. As expected, they both had messages waiting from Rhys' Velaris family, mostly wishing them a happy Solstice.

It took about ten minutes to answer them, and, once caught up with the outside world, they locked their phones and put them on their chargers. “Do you need to check in with your office,” Feyre asked.

“Not tonight,” Rhys answered. “I should be all right until we return to Velaris and Mor will text me if something I need to deal with comes up before we get back.”

“A morning flight is going to be interesting,” Feyre said. “I've never flown into Velaris in the morning.

“Um, it's pretty much like flying in later in the day,” Rhys smirked. “Only the position of the sun is different.”

“Smartass prick,” Feyre shot back. “See if I sit by you on the plane. I may just call tonight and get my seat assignment changed.”

“I was afraid you were going to arrange for me to be seated in the cargo section, so I don't feel too badly about how this is going,” Rhys teased.

Feyre threw a throw pillow at him and picked up her sketch book and pencils to continue working on her sketches.

Rhys just laughed and turned on the TV and they agreed on a TV series to begin watching. He caught glimpses of her work and was amazed at how lifelike her candid sketch of him was. Feyre was engrossed in the project, so she wasn't really paying attention to the TV, and Rhys was engrossed in watching her sketch. He found it fascinating and thoroughly enjoyed the evening. When Feyre had finished the sketch, she turned to Rhys and asked him if he wanted it.

“Of course I want it,” Rhys said incredulously. “Don't you want it?,” he asked carefully. “You worked pretty hard on it, after all.”

“I'll just take a photo of it and you can have the original. I have to spray it with fixative to protect the pencil lead—some of the pencils I used are pretty soft, so they'd smear if the picture was handled without fixative to seal the lead.”

Feyre got up and went to her closet, rummaging in her art supplies until she found the can of fixative spray she wanted. She put her initials and the date in the lower right corner of the sketch, then carefully removed the sketch of Rhys cooking Solstice dinner from her new sketch book. After taking the sketch and fixative to the kitchen, she laid the sketch on a counter, took a picture of it, then sprayed the fixative on it. “It'll be good and dry by morning,” she called to Rhys, “But we'll take it to Velaris is my sketchbook so it doesn't get creased or wrinkled on the trip. Otherwise, it's all yours now.

“Do you feel like some ice cream, love?,” she asked. “Or something to drink?”

“I'm bringing the water glasses,” answered Rhys. “I'll get us more ice water if you want to get us some ice cream. I'm sorry that I don't have a birthday cake for you, but I'll make up for it in Velaris, okay?”

“Please don't, Rhys. I genuinely would rather be done with it today—I'm not one who celebrates my birthday. You and Alis are the **only** people who get to break that rule, and I'd appreciate it if you keep it that way.”

Rhys studied her and determined that she was telling him the truth—she still did not like people making a fuss over her and he quickly decided to abandon the small party he had been thinking he'd throw in her honor during her vacation. At least he hadn't told the rest of the family yet, so he breathed a private sigh of relief that he had avoided a huge mess that would have left at least one person very unhappy.

“All right, I'll honor your wish,” Rhys said. “I've not told anyone of your birthday, so they won't find out from me, and if anyone asks, I'll let them know that you prefer not to celebrate it.”

Feyre came over to him with the ice cream and set the dishes on the counter to give him a hug. “Thank you; I would really appreciate it. I know they can find the date in other ways, but if you would head off any parties and stuff, I would be forever grateful. If anyone asks me about it, I will just tell them I don't celebrate it and if they want to get a gift anyway, I will tell them to make a donation to their favorite charity instead. That way, some genuine good comes of it.”

They turned out the kitchen lights and took the ice cream and ice water to the sitting room and resumed watching the series. Both of them were tired after all the activity of the day, even with their naps, so they watched TV until around eleven o'clock and went up to bed, holding each other tightly all night long.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.
> 
> TW for sexual behavior between consenting adults.

Rhys and Feyre allowed themselves to sleep in the day after Solstice; it was also Monday, December 22nd , but many people took a few days away from jobs around Solstice, so the neighborhood was fairly quiet and they weren't disturbed. Feyre awoke first, slowly, since she had no need to get up and dress right away. Instead, she turned over and curled herself farther into Rhys' arms, just breathing in his scent for a few moments. She never tired of watching her Rhys sleep, especially when she chanced to see a small smile appear.

Feyre had to use the bath eventually, so she carefully eased out of bed, picking up Rhys' tee shirt on the way. After using the facilities, then cleaning up a little, she braided her hair and donned the tee shirt. She closed the bedroom door quietly and went to make coffee for them.

While she was enjoying her first cup, she was catching up with the internet news on her phone and noticed that it was nine-thirty, mildly surprising her. Feyre rarely slept that late, especially when they had gone to bed at eleven o'clock the night before. _Sleeping is always easier when I'm with Rhys,_ she thought. _As though I'm able to relax all the way. Odd, though._

Shortly, the stairs creaked as Rhys came downstairs, so she rose and poured him coffee, setting it on the table beside the sugar bowl and a spoon. As she was straightening up, two muscular arms gently closed around her; she closed her eyes, taking in his scent while she turned in his arms for a good morning kiss.

“Good morning, lover,” Feyre murmured. “Did you sleep well?”

“Most certainly,” Rhys purred. “I see that my tee shirt is well positioned to enjoy the day.”

“I didn't want to wake you up by finding my clothes—I should have been aware enough to set clothes out last night. Still, your tee shirt is really very comfortable and leaves plenty of room for your clever hands to find their way around all the attractions,” she said with a hitch in her voice as his hands were working their magic on her body.

Feyre moved away with a pang of regret. “I'm sorry, love, but I've got some things to accomplish today if we're leaving tomorrow morning. I won't be back here until January first and return to work on the second, so it would be best for me to set things up to be ready for that.”

Rhys sat down with his coffee and his own phone, checking for messages, mail, and then the news. “What's our list, then?,” he asked. “I'll be glad to help.”

“Typical household stuff,” she answered. “Not a deep housecleaning job, but a little dusting, straightening all the rooms, sweeping all the floors, stuff like that. I'd like us to take showers early enough to get laundry done and clean the bath, but we have some time. Then, I want to go to a little store near here to get what groceries I can get that aren't perishable—I'll have time when I return to get the perishable foods.”

“How's this plan, my very able lead admin?,” Rhys asked. “We get all that done, saving out one load of laundry, then we either take a shared shower, or,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows, then sighing deeply, “we take boring solo showers. After that, I'll clean the bath while you're getting dressed for me to take you to the steak restaurant you took me to in June. I've been having dreams about it and I really think we need to go there tonight. Then we can do the last load of laundry and we should have finished our list of things to do today.”

“Somewhere in there, I need to pack,” Feyre reminded him, “but it shouldn't take long. I've had enough practice over the months to make it fairly routine. I'll need an idea of what kind of clothing to bring this time, aside from the warmer, the better. If you know of places we'll be going that need dressier clothing, please tell me.”

“Mor definitely really wants the family to go to Rita's—has she mentioned Rita's lately? It's a dance club in Velaris that she and Andi adore. Once in a while the rest of us go with them, and she really wants to introduce you to it this visit. We wouldn't have to close the club with them—they often stay to last call, but a few hours would maybe be okay?”, he looked at her questioningly.

“What kind of outfit would I want for the evening,” Feyre asked.

“Um, I was thinking of your Night Triumphant dress,” Rhys commented quietly.

“Isn't it going to be too cold for that one?,” Feyre asked dubiously. “It's basically made for the shawl and sandals I wore with it in September. I can't think my winter coat and any kind of boots would be a good look with it. On the other hand, that particular look would undoubtedly keep Cassian and Azriel on an even keel,” she smiled lopsidedly. “It just wouldn't affect you the way it did in September.

“I'd really, really like you to wear it,” Rhys said. 'I can arrange it so you don't have to walk in snow and ice, so the sandals should be okay for the short walk from where I let you out to the front door. What about if we shop for a long, heavy cape that goes with the dress—it would still give you an elegant look and be suitable for the weather.”

“All right,” Feyre decided. “The cape will be a necessity, though. I would hope Cas and Az have adjusted to me by now, though” she said with a smile.

“Oh, I'm not worried about them,” Rhys said with a smirk. “It will be an interesting evening for the partiers of Velaris, though. We've pretty much kept out of the limelight, so they've not met you yet, and certainly not the you in the Night Triumphant dress,” he said with a note of smugness in his voice.

“Rhys, I don't think I like the sound of that,” Feyre began, looking sharply at him. “I'm not interested in shocking the population of Velaris. Despite what you all say, I am **not** a perfect physical specimen, and even if I were, I don't like being exhibited. You may have misunderstood why I bought that particular dress as opposed to any of the other lovely ones Mor, Andi, and I looked at that day.

"Aside from its beauty, I chose that dress for its significance to you, and you alone, because of its resemblance to the night sky.”

“Feyre, why do you shy away from your beauty?” Rhys asked quietly. “Whether you accept it or not, others find you to be gorgeous in appearance, highly intelligent, funny as sin, warm as the sun, I could go on, but your ego would then match mine. Why is that such a problem for you?”

“You kind of make it sound like you want to use me to shock people, and as a bonus, they might envy you for being seen with me,” Feyre answered forthrightly. “It doesn't sound like you wanted me to wear it because you liked seeing me in it in September and wanted to see me in it again. Or at least, that second option is of less importance to you than the first one might be. I'm with you on wearing this particular dress right up to the point that it matters to you what others might think of me wearing it. I don't want to be a show animal that you're proud of—that's saying more about the male than the female, to me. Even with your massive ego, I doubt you'd appreciate being exhibited just because you're so drop dead handsome, which you certainly are. If I did that, I'd just be using you to give myself a lift, and that wouldn't give you a good feeling about yourself. For me, I don't want to wear the dress for any reason other than we both like it. I don't really care what the rest of Velaris thinks of me in it and I would rather that you didn't care, either.”

“I confess that I've put myself in a rather unattractive position,” Rhys said slowly, “and I definitely owe you an apology. I really am sorry, Fey. I behaved in a territorial way that would have made you look subservient to me, when that isn't what I want to do at all. It also sounds like maybe you think I appreciate only your looks, which, and I don't apologize for this, are perfect for me and to me.

“I **am** Cauldron-damned proud of you and it still amazes me every minute of every day that you have chosen to be with me, at least for now. I know deep down that I don't deserve you, but I vowed to myself a long time ago that, if you gave me a chance, I would spend my life trying to be worthy of you. I'm proud of you for becoming the female you've become, for honing your intelligence, for cultivating your wit, for making yourself be warm and caring to others when life has treated you in such a way that no one would blame you for being cold and uncaring, and for developing your art to the point that I know of people who have asked where they can buy your work. All of those are traits that you yourself worked to develop. You need to learn to appreciate yourself, my love. There's a whole lot there to take pride in.

“And, you **are** gorgeous. I realize that you choose not to accept it, maybe because it wasn't something that you worked at because your looks are just what life handed you, or perhaps it just doesn't matter to you. Anyway, yes, I have rethought my suggestion. I would love to see you in the Night Triumphant dress, because I love your look in it and this particular dress means a great deal to me. It reminds me of a very special night in September. I will cheerfully shop for a cape for it if you'd like to wear it, but you don't need to. Any sort of dress you would wear to go dancing will do nicely. Again, I'm sorry, Fey. You were right to call me on my bullshit.” Rhys looked at her carefully, trying to gauge her reaction to his enforced honesty.

Feyre sighed and came around the table, asking Rhys to turn around. She slowly straddled him and drew him into a tight hug which he reciprocated immediately. “You're forgiven, love,” she told him softly. “If you've adjusted your reasoning to accommodate my feelings, then I will gladly wear the Night Triumphant dress—for **us**. Not you, not me, not all of Velaris, but for **just** us. And, for the record, whether I agree with the assessment or not, I am glad that **you** find me attractive. I just don't care whether others do or not. There are other traits that I value much more highly. And you must keep reminding yourself, Rhys, of what I told you a while ago, that as long as we are happy together, we deserve each other and we deserve to be happy. Always remember that.” She kissed him deeply, then rose to dress for the day and make breakfast.

After a quick breakfast of cereal, toast, and fruit, Feyre and Rhys started the housework. With both of them working on the project, they were able to finish most of it by two o'clock, when they sat down to rest.

“Let's have lunch, then get groceries, all right?,” Feyre asked. “Of course, you can stay here if you'd rather. It won't take long.”

“No, I want to go,” Rhys said instantly. “Shall I heat the leftovers from Solstice?”

“I think so,” Feyre replied. “I'll cut up some fruit, and we'll finish the dinner bread. That ought to mean we're getting hungry about seven o'clock tonight. Would that be a good time for dinner out?”

“Sounds fine to me. So, lunch, groceries, packing, showers, and finish laundry. We can do this,” he grinned.

“For the reward of steak from **that** restaurant, I should hope so. It's pretty special,” Feyre retorted as she moved to the refrigerator to start getting the lunch foods out.

A couple of hours later, Rhys and Feyre were winding up the work, leaving just their showers, cleaning the shower, and finishing the laundry before dinner. “Let's rest for a few minutes then share a shower,” Rhys suggested. “It'll save us fifteen or twenty minutes if we share,” he said winningly.

Feyre burst out laughing. “How do you figure that, Prick? You're forgetting all the fun and games we play that take way more than a shower's worth of time. But it's a good try, a very good try. Good enough that I'm agreeing with you. I'll race you upstairs but no running on the stairs!”

“You realize that you're standing and I'm sitting so you get a head start, right, Feyre Darling?,” Rhys asked.

“Yes, I do,” Feyre smirked, starting up the stairs with folded laundry in hand.

After putting the laundry away, Feyre and Rhys came together in her bedroom, kissing deeply as their hands roamed. Feyre slowly drew Rhys' tee shirt off, then backed away, looked deeply and steadily in his eyes as she drew her own shirt slowly over her head, arching her back at an opportune moment. Rhys groaned softly in the back of his throat at he scene he witnessed. He made to come to Feyre so he could worship her breasts, but Feyre, remaining silent, held up one small hand. She turned her back to him and slowly bent over to remove her sandals, setting them down out of their way. Again she stared at him with a smirk as she fingered the waistband of her jeans.

Meanwhile, Rhys was enthralled with her strip job, trying not to groan again and failing miserably. He almost made to approach her again when she began toying with the button on her jeans, a small smile playing on her lips as her stare pinned him in place. His mouth started working as he observed the female he loved to all distraction slowly baring herself for him, showing him that she loved him just as much.

Just when he couldn't bear it any longer, Feyre unbuttoned her jeans and casually slid them down her long, shapely legs, kicking them off onto her sandals. She stood tall again, back slightly arched, and beckoned him forward to her. He made the distance in one long step, burying his face between her breasts while gently toying with her nipples, already taut. Feyre gently cupped Rhys' already erect cock, massaging it, stroking it through the fabric. She ran her lithe fingers around the waistband of his sweatpants, then plunged her hand inside, carefully grasping him, slowly pumping as she kissed the top of his head.

She slid his pants and shorts down his muscular legs, kissing his stomach, his flat abdomen, his groin, and finally, his cock. His pants removed, she was free to take him in her mouth, putting her hands on his hips to pull him closer to her as she moved on him. Rhys plunged his hands in her hair, kneading her scalp as he groaned softly. “Gods, you feel so good, love!,” he murmured.

“Mmmm, you too. I love this,” Feyre whispered, resuming her ministrations. Rhys reached down and grasped her torso, gently lifting her away. “I want to come in your core,” he said. “I'm too close right now.”

“Shower or bed?,” Feyre asked.

“Shower, definitely shower,” he answered as he walked them into the bath. He got out towels for them while Feyre turned on the water and adjusted its temperature. They came together, body to body for a deep kiss, then climbed in. Rhys entered her in one long stroke, causing her to moan in pleasure. As he kissed her, a skilled hand found her clit, already aroused from her oral performance, and gently manipulated it as he slowly moved in her. “I don't know long I'll last, love” he said. “I'm close.”

“Mmmm,” Feyre said, breaking away from kissing Rhys' neck. “I know, baby. Come for me. I'll be fine for now.”

They lost themselves in each other until Rhys shuddered as he came, kissing her deeply. He stayed in her, moving slowly as they came down, then they gently separated, lovingly stroking each other before washing and shampooing.

After dressing, Feyre used the hair dryer to dry her long hair, then braided it. Both she and Rhys dressed in casual jeans and shirts for the restaurant. True to his word, Rhys cleaned the bath while Feyre put on mascara, a little blush, and lip gloss for the evening out, then went downstairs. Before leaving for the restaurant, they washed the last load of clothes and would dry it when they returned.

The restaurant was exactly as it had been in June, although they sat side by side in a different booth than the one they had been in before. Again, they were sitting as close to each other as they could and holding hands as they talked and laughed quietly. Both of them chose steak, French fries, and salad, all of which were done to perfection. They chose a red wine with dinner which was the perfect touch for them. As they were finishing their meal, Tarquin Waterson strolled by with a date; he happened to glance down and his eyes widened as he recognized Feyre and Rhys. The four of them spoke for a few minutes, then Tarquin and his date excused themselves and went on to their table.

“How much do your workmates know about us?” Rhys asked curiously. “I don't mind at all if they know; I regularly crow our status and current developments from the rooftop of the house, so...”

“Only Alis knows much about us at all, I think, and she wouldn't say anything to anyone unless I asked her to. Which I haven't. She knows that you've given me a ring, but I didn't tell her the story of the ring. She knows when I take time off to see you, though not about the short weekends when I've come up to Velaris. She has some kind of radar thingy going on that lets her know when you're coming down most trips, because she chases me out of the office early to 'get ready,' as she calls it. I shudder to think that she's suggesting that I pay a visit to your favorite store in all of Adriata, but I think she might be because she knows that I now know how to cook one single dish as opposed to the none I could do before, so I don't ever need that many groceries,” Feyre smirked.

Rhys laughed as he said, “Okay, that's fair. We should go to the lingerie store in the morning on the way to the airport. We can take a few selfies there and send them to her. It would make her happy, Feyre Darling.” He looked hopefully at her.

“All the gods of the Cauldron have mercy, no possible way, Prick,” Feyre said quietly but firmly. “I don't know for a fact that's why she's kicking me loose; maybe she really does think I go buy groceries, and I'm not enlightening her with selfies at the lingerie store. Nope. She likes a top line summary of our trips and abhors details, anyway. Selfies at the lingerie store are classified as details.

“And, I believe you might be trying to get me to forget the seventy five or so discussions you and I have had on this subject already. The poor people at the store are not at all adequately prepared for the miracle that is you swaggering into the store to help me shop, and especially not to help me try on the merchandise. Plus, you realize that anything we damaged has to be paid for, right?”

“That would be well worth the cost just for the experience,” Rhys chuckled.

Feyre groaned and facepalmed herself. “I just knew as those words started to come out of my mouth that they would not help my case in the least. You can please forget them.

“The fact remains that, since I am positive that you would not act **at all** like the rare males who actually come in there and go straight to the service desk to buy gift cards without taking their eyes off the desk, I'm not about to let you venture in there. Final decision, no appeal.”

“Fine, be that way,” Rhys huffed good naturedly. “I'm not giving up, though.”

Feyre just laughed as they rose to pay for dinner and go home.

They finished the laundry and put it away, then took a short walk around Feyre's neighborhood, enjoying the mild winter evening in Adriata before Rhys took Feyre upstairs to make slow, gentle love to her, worshiping her body as much as she had worshiped his earlier in the day. They contentedly settled down to sleep, having set a rare alarm to be up on time to get to the airport when they needed to be there.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

Rhys woke first this time, just before the alarm went off, so he carefully reached over Feyre so she could sleep a few more minutes. He buried his face in her hair and roused himself when he noticed that he was drifting back to sleep. They only had a couple of hours until they had to be at the airport, so it really wouldn't do if he fell back asleep and they were late. I _'d better get all the way up,_ he thought. _Maybe make us some coffee and get a light breakfast put together._ With that decided, he carefully extricated himself from Feyre and put on his sweatpants and tee shirt from yesterday. After quietly using the bath, Rhys went downstairs and made their coffee, then gathered cereal and what he needed to make toast. He checked his phone and put his charger by the stairs to put it in his carry on bag. _Only one message from Mor wishing us safe travels, so that's good. Everything must be going well up in Velaris. I hate to do it, but I'd better wake Feyre—she really hates to be rushed when she's leaving for a while._

With that, he left his phone on the counter by Feyre's phone and charger, picked up his charger and went up to Feyre's room. The door opened quietly as he went inside, watching her still peacefully sleeping. After putting his charger on top of his bag, he gently sat down beside her, rousing her. She gave a catlike stretch and turned towards him, smiling in the morning sunlight. “Good morning, lover. This is a much better way to wake up than the alarm,” she said in a sleepy voice. Rhys leaned over and pulled her up into his chest to kiss her good morning, then released her and found her robe for her.

“Why not just wear this for right now? I have our coffee made and cereal and toast ready to go. Then you'll have plenty of time to finish what you need to do before we leave.”

“Okay, that's good, thanks,” Feyre said, rising to put the robe on and going to the bath.

Rhys made the bed and picked up their clothing from the night before, putting his own aside to change into for the trip and putting Feyre's clothing on top of the hamper since he didn't know if she needed to take it to Velaris or not. Satisfied that the room was neat, he returned to the kitchen and poured Feyre's coffee before starting the toast and pouring his cereal. Feyre was soon downstairs in a lightweight sweater, jeans, and boots, dishing her own cereal up and taking a piece of toast for herself. They talked quietly as befit the early hour and were soon finished.

“I'm nearly ready to go,” Rhys said. “Do you want me to take care of the kitchen while you finish getting ready?”

“That would be really nice of you,” Feyre answered. “The dishes can all go in the dishwasher; there aren't enough in there to run it yet, though. I'll take care of that sometime after I get back, okay?”

"Sounds good,” Rhys replied, taking dishes to the sink to rinse them off since they wouldn't be washed at all soon and loading the dishwasher. He rinsed and dried the coffeemaker pieces and Feyre's cup and put them by the coffeemaker, then cruised all the downstairs rooms to make sure that all were clean and straightened before going upstairs to finish getting ready for the trip home.

“I have two suitcases and my art set to take on the plane,” Feyre said when she saw him. Since you have just a carry on this trip, can you check one of my bags? I'll just pay the extra fee to check the other.”

“I'll have to think about that, Feyre—it's getting fairly personal,” Rhys teased. "Is our relationship ready for that?,” he asked with a smirk.

“If there's a sound kiss on the line? I should hope so,” Feyre smirked right back. “But if the offer isn't good enough...”

“No, love, it's just fine. I'd have done it for a peck on the cheek, just so you know, but the deal is made. I'm looking forward to collecting my sound kiss this afternoon. Do you care which one I check?”

“Given that lacy underbits are in both the suitcases, you'll probably be best off with the art set,” Feyre replied dryly.

“I'm confident enough to not be threatened by the X-ray machine connecting lacy unmentionables to me,” Rhys said gallantly. “I'll claim them in a second. The machine would probably just think I was some hen-pecked male traveling with his domineering female anyway. No big deal.” He laughed as Feyre threw a towel at him and caught her up in a hug.

“Have I mentioned how much I love you?,” Feyre asked him, looking into his violet eyes.

“Only a few times today,” he responded regretfully, looking as deeply into her storm gray and blue eyes, “but we've been busy. I've been remiss in telling you, I'm afraid.”

They kissed deeply, then separated and carried their bags downstairs, setting them by the door. They gathered their phones and Feyre's charger, Feyre's purse, and went into the sitting room to await the cab Feyre had called. It arrived shortly, so, in spite of the relatively warmer Adriata weather, they put on heavy jackets and locked up the house to leave.

Traveling together for the first time, it amazed both of them how fast the trip went. Almost before they knew it, the plane made a smooth landing in Velaris and they were going into the terminal to collect their checked bags. On exiting, they were expecting to hail a cab, but found Andi waiting for them with a big smile and hug for each of them. “I was off today, so I asked Mor if I could come out and pick you up. She said I could definitely pick Feyre up, but that I should see how your ego is looking today before deciding if you can go with us, Rhys.” She looked him over carefully as he said, ”Wait. What? My defenseless little ego?” All three burst into laughter as Andi pronounced him fit, so they left the airport for the short drive to Rhys' home.

On the way, they caught up on each other's news, then reviewed the plans for the remainder of the week. “We'd like to have the after-Solstice celebration at our place,” Andi said. “We thought we'd do pizza and beer. Do you want to do it tonight or tomorrow night?”

Feyre and Rhys looked at each other, then told Andi that either night would be fine with them.

“Why don't we plan on seven o'clock tonight, then?” Andi decided. “Mor wants to hit Rita's on Friday night, so we'll give you a few days to build up your strength,” she said impishly.

“What time have you set for Rita's,” Rhys asked.

“Nine o'clock or so,” Andi replied, “though we aren't on a schedule for that one. That's all that we have on the schedule. I don't know if Cas or Az have asked you to do anything.”

“Not yet,' Rhys responded, “but with them, a gym trip or a play is possible. We'll have to see what their thinking is.”

With that, they arrived at Rhys' home. After thanking Andi profusely for picking them up at the airport, they promised to be at her home by seven o'clock and went inside. It was markedly colder than Feyre was used to, so she was glad she had brought little besides cold weather clothing.

“Do you remember telling me you really didn't like hot weather?,” Feyre asked Rhys. “I'm that way with cold weather. I plan to observe winter from the comfort of a heated room.”

“That's going to make it difficult to get places,” Rhys teased.

“I had a reason for waiting to be born until practically anything in the world that I want can be delivered to my front door. I can minimize my time outside that way.” She shuddered daintily.

“Okay, that's a plan,” Rhys said. “Meantime, let's get the suitcases upstairs and sort out the gifts we need to take tonight, then we need to get some lunch. Are you getting hungry yet?”

“Actually, now that you bring it up, I'd rather get lunch before doing the presents, if it's fine with you? I've gotten really hungry in the last hour. My gifts to take over there are all wrapped and tagged already, and we can use the suitcase I brought them in to take all the gifts over, yours and mine, if you want. I'll help you with wrapping and tagging the gifts you are taking over if you like,” Feyre answered

“Next question, then. Can you come with me to the kitchen and we can see what I have that we'd like to eat?,” Rhys asked.

“Sure,” Feyre said, getting up from the davenport and taking Rhys' hand. “Lead on; I'm sure we can come up with something. Should I call or text Mor and see if she wants us to bring anything tonight?”

“You can,” Rhys said, “but I already arranged for a beer and wine delivery which covers all of our tastes. We split the cost of the pizzas, so that's covered. I haven't heard anything about desserts, though, so maybe we can offer that?”

Feyre veered over to her purse and took her phone out to bring it to the table to work with her message while they ate.

They examined the contents of the refrigerator and pantry and decided on soup and sandwiches, since they were easy to fix and to clean up. They cooperated on making lunch and were soon eating. Feyre had texted Mor, letting her know how grateful they were to Andi for picking them up at the airport, and asking if there was anything needed for the party like desserts or something else and was waiting to hear back.

After lunch and picking up the kitchen, they went upstairs to work with Rhys' gifts. He was storing them in his upstairs closet; most were already wrapped, but Feyre wrapped and Rhys tagged a few. All fit easily into the second suitcase Feyre had brought, once she removed the sweaters she had brought to Velaris. Removing them caused her to wonder about what she should wear to the party.

“This year we decided to go casual, so what we're wearing now would be fine. I didn't plan on changing, anyway,” Rhys told her. He was wearing a black button down shirt, black jeans, and black boots. Feyre thought about it and decided that her sweater, blue jeans, and boots would be fine, but she did pull a heavy knit cap, muffler, and gloves from her main suitcase and set them on top of the gift suitcase so she wouldn't forget them.

“I'm going to settle in a little,” she told Rhys. “Can I put a few things in the bath and hang some clothes in the closet?”

“That's perfectly fine; do you want help?,” he asked.

“No, thanks, but you can keep me company,” Feyre answered, as she opened her clothing suitcase and started work on hanging clothes, moving toiletries and makeup to the bath, and trying to organize what was left in the suitcase. It didn't take too long to do her work and they were free for three hours or so before they would need to leave for Mor and Andi's home.

“Would you mind terribly if I take a nap for a while?,” Feyre asked Rhys. “For some reason, I'm wilted already and where we're doing your Solstice celebration, I wouldn't do it justice, I'm afraid.”

“Not at all,” he readily responded. “If I promise to keep my hands to myself, can I join you? I confess that I'm ready to be finished with today right now myself. Maybe we'll do better after a nap. Shall I set the alarm for six o'clock tonight?”

“I want to say 'no, don't bother,' but with both of us being tired, it's likely a good idea. I don't want to be responsible for wrecking things by being late,” Feyre said while moving to the bed.

“Hands to yourself,” she warned with an arched brow as she removed her sweater, jeans, and boots.

“Likewise, Feyre Darling,” Rhys smirked as he similarly disrobed and climbed into bed, holding his arms out for her.

“Mmmm, I do love you. You're certainly a prick on rare occasions, but you're my prick,” Feyre said, giving him a kiss of comfort before relaxing into his arms. Both were asleep almost instantly, waking later to the alarm Rhys had set.

“Do you want a shower, love?” he asked.

“No, that would take longer than we have, I'm afraid. I'll just wash up a little and if that doesn't wake me up, I'll make coffee, all right?”

“Okay. I'm going to take a quick shower and I'll meet you downstairs. If you're making coffee, that sounds good to me, but don't worry about it if you don't want any,” Rhys said.

Feyre gathered her things and moved to the guest bath across the hall while Rhys showered. It didn't take long for her to clean up, re-braid her hair, dress, and put on light makeup. Rhys was still showering as she went downstairs. She put both their phones on their chargers and started a small pot of coffee, hoping that it would finish waking her up.

She took her current book from her purse and was reading when Rhys came downstairs, looking impeccably groomed, as always.

“You look awesome,” Feyre commented, looking him up and down. “I made coffee, but you don't look as if it's necessary.”

“Looks are sometimes deceiving,” was all Rhys said as he added his sugar to his coffee. “Thank you, though, and thanks for the coffee.”

Mor and Andi lived relatively close by, so they were able to arrive on time. Mor had never answered Feyre's text asking if they could bring anything, so they assumed that all was taken care of, and just took the suitcase full of gifts up to the front door, quietly knocking on it. The door flew open and Mor enveloped Feyre, then Rhys in her traditional bear hug.

“I'm so glad you're here,” she cried. “Happy Solstice! Come in, come in. You're the first, so you get to choose the wine we start with.”

Andi had come up behind Mor and kissed her lightly, then move past her to greet Feyre and Rhys much more gently than Mor had done, but no less warmly. They put their coats on the coat tree and set the gifts by the Solstice tree in the living room.

“Can I help with anything?,” Feyre asked.

Andi told her that it would all be very informal this year, eating off of paper plates and paper napkins; only the glassware would need washing. The pizzas, beer, and wines were all here and ready to serve when the others arrived.

“Where it's an evening during the work week, we thought that a casual night would be better for everyone,” she explained. “When we get ready to serve, ask again, all right? You know it'll get confusing when Cas and Az arrive,” Andi said with a smile.

Soon the others did arrive, all bearing gifts which they deposited under the Solstice tree. Cassian looked as though he was considering exploring the large pile, but Mor interrupted him by asking him to bring out beer for anyone wanting it. She and Feyre would do the wine, Mor announced.

“Amren, wine or beer? Ice water?”, she asked. Andi, love? What would you like?”

After getting the drink requests, Feyre and Mor poured glasses of wine and glasses of ice water, then distributed them while Cassian merely took the caps off beer bottles and handed them to the males.

“What?,” he asked Mor who was rolling her eyes at him.

“The beer steins on the kitchen counter escaped your notice?,” she asked pointedly.

He looked around at his brothers to gather their moral support and said with a straight face, “We talked it over and agreed that we didn't want to break the pretty steins.” He looked again at his brothers and they all nodded in agreement.

“You're all hopeless,” Amren said. “But where the three of you are concerned, you have a point, Cassian. It's probably bad luck to break a beer stein at a Solstice celebration or something and you lot would be the ones to test the theory.”

Cassian took in Amren's rare agreement with him, looking to find the snark in it, then he gave up and smiled winningly at Mor. “Amren agrees with us.”

Mor just shook her head as she and Andi brought the pizzas, plates, and napkins out to the coffee table so they could serve themselves. They did so and dug in, conversing as always in a mix of gentle teasing, snark, and, rarely, actual conversation. After they'd finished eating, Feyre and Andi picked up the remains, refrigerating the leftovers and putting the paper and cardboard in the recycle bin. Mor refreshed people's drinks and they settled down to the serious business of opening gifts.

Andi was elected Elf, the Distributor of Gifts, for the fifth year in a row, being deemed the most responsible one of the group where gifts are concerned, though Feyre got two votes and Amren received one vote. She rose gracefully and chose gifts for everyone to open. The group as a whole seemed willing to take turns so that everyone could watch each other opening gifts; Mor and Cassian were the two outliers, however. Both of them immediately tore into their gifts in a frenzy, causing the remainder of the group to shake their heads and laugh, then sedately take their turns.

After all was said and done, Mor and Andi had given them all terrible Solstice sweaters which somehow featured reindeer managing to leer evilly at the world. They added a gift card to each gift for people's favorite stores so all were happy. Amren's gifts were entirely gift cards—she claimed to be a terrible shopper and told them they were far better off finding something they actually wanted than pinning their hopes on her poor shopping skills. That met with approval all around, of course. Cassian and Azriel also gave gift cards but with small gag gifts for each person—Rhys got a mankini, for example, from one of them.

“Save that,” Feyre called out when he opened it. “We can find a use for it,” she said as Rhys' jaw dropped.

“Who's this 'we' you talk about, pretty female?,” Rhys asked her. “I get it that **you're** planning to be involved, but I'm drawing a blank on who's going to wear it for you. Considering that neon lime green is **not** my color, it wouldn't be me!”

“Oh, we'll see,” Feyre said mysteriously. “Just humor me and keep it.”

Azriel, taking in the exchange, smiled broadly and said, “Pics or it didn't happen.”

“It didn't happen,” Rhys said with a laugh. Feyre just continued to smile. She knew the betting pool would open on the matter as soon as she and Rhys were out the door.

Feyre had given Amren a lovely dragon pendant accented with faceted rubies and silver eyes on a heavy silver link chain which Amren immediately put on; that relieved Feyre. She had so hoped Amren would like it because it reminded Feyre of her. Mor and Andi received similar but not identical extra long winter scarves of extremely soft wool so they could wrap them around themselves as they liked based on the chill factor of the day. In addition, each of their boxes contained gloves and a sizable gift card for their favorite lingerie store. Their eyes lit up at that, flying straight to Feyre, asking her how she knew the store.

“Don't bother asking a lead admin how she knows anything,” Feyre intoned. “It's a trade secret, but I do wish you both a wonderful shopping trip.”

Feyre became nervous as the time for Cassian and Azriel to open their gifts approached. They seemed to like them, though. She had painted each of them a portrait: Cassian in an Illyrian training ring, ready to face off with another warrior and Azriel, inscrutable as always, looking off in the distance with the suggestion of shadows around him as though he were receiving information from them. That would account for his uncanny intuition about people and situations.

She relaxed as Rhys began unwrapping her gift: an extra long black winter scarf of the same soft wool as Mor and Andi's scarves, gloves, and an all-expenses paid week for two at one of Summer Leisure Industries' most luxurious resorts, collectible at any time he chose. The thing that made his gift special is the design she had adapted from her Stars Eternal painting of Ramiel and the three attendant stars and had a skilled embroidery artist embroider in shades of silver on both ends of the scarf, quite similar to the design she had given Alis to emboss on the folder and notebook that Alis gave him. Rhys was speechless for a moment, then gathered Feyre in for a deep kiss, telling her thank you in the best way possible.

Feyre received a premium tennis racquet for use following the winter from Rhys, as well as the promise that they would remodel an unused bedroom at his home, one with north light, for use as an art studio.

“The reason it isn't done now is that I want you to have the features you want in it, so we'll talk it over this week and decide what you want the contractor to be told, then I can arrange to meet with a contractor and get the work done,” Rhys told her.

Feyre teared up as she gathered him into a hug. “Thank you so much, my love. It's more than I'd ever dreamed of.”

“Just paint what you feel,” he replied, looking into her eyes. “Whatever your truth is.”

After visiting for a short time longer, people began going home for the evening. Mor and Andi showed Feyre the painting she'd given them in June which they'd hung in their family room. As Rhys had told Feyre, Andi had built a seashore-themed tableau beneath the painting which complemented it beautifully and made a lovely focal point for the room. “I love it,” Feyre told them as she and Rhys were leaving, and they assured her that they loved the painting just as much. After promising to see each other at Rita's on Friday night, Rhys and Feyre went home for the evening.

On arriving home and putting their gifts away as necessary, Rhys and Feyre got glasses of ice water and settled on the davenport. Although it was still relatively early and they'd had a nap before attending the Solstice gathering, both were exhausted and nothing sounded better to either one than just vegging together. They resumed watching a TV series on Netflix and cuddled until they could justify going up to bed after a tiring few days. They promised each other that they'd sleep in the next morning and would be able to function more normally. At least, each thought, they were sleeping together, and that meant a peaceful night's rest.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.
> 
> TW for sexual behavior between consenting adults.

After sleeping in late Wednesday morning, Rhys and Feyre woke together and cuddled for another hour before getting up to start their day. They had already decided to stay around home and let the rest of the world flow by them for a day. Feyre wanted to work with her new art supplies and reminded herself to give Rhys the sketch she'd made of him while they were in Adriata. Rhys planned to check in remotely with his office and do what he needed to do for work, then watch Feyre while he pretended to read.

First, though, coffee was a necessity for both of them, so Feyre made that while Rhys made them bacon and pancakes for breakfast. The talked quietly, easing into the day and enjoying quiet time with each other until they'd finished eating. Feyre cleaned up the dishes and made them more coffee while Rhys brought his computer to the table and logged in remotely. He reluctantly got to work, going over reports, answering messages, and finalizing the details of the Kallias Insurance software roll out.

When Feyre had finished the work in the kitchen, she took a quick shower, then picked up the upstairs rooms and made the bed before coming back downstairs and settling down to carefully examine all of her new art supplies on the floor of the living room She completely lost track of time exploring it all and visualizing what she might do with it. She looked up to see Rhys stowing his computer in the hall closet.

“Are you ready for more coffee?,” Feyre asked, looking up at him with a smile.

“I am if we can have it in here so I can watch you,” he replied. “I find it fascinating to see you enjoying your supplies the way you do.”

Feyre flushed and explained that she was making plans for using various items but that she never really talked about artwork before she made it.

“That's fine,” said Rhys. “I hope I can just watch while I pretend to read?”

Feyre just laughed and said, “Yes, Prick. You may certainly watch.”

After an hour or so of arranging the contents of her new art case to her satisfaction, Feyre went upstairs to the bedroom and began work on her next idea of how the day could be spent. She got into her suitcase and pulled a bag containing clothing out—her special gift for Rhys as well as her special gift for herself. She began arranging the clothing across the bed. Three sets of lingerie in three colors: pale pink lace, nude beige sheer nylon, and a spangled deep, deep purple satin, in three slightly different styles lay beside three pairs of male's bikini cut underwear, each one in black, each one semi-sheer with different patterns woven into the fabric. A black sheer short male's kimono with black satin bands of fabric adorning all of the borders with a black satin belt lay beside the underwear. She went into the bath and quickly shed her clothing entirely and put on her own sheer short kimono: a confection of pale pink sheer fabric with a pale pink satin border. She tied its belt, then fluffed her hair one last time and went to the head of the stairs. _I hope this works. Gods. I'm just springing it on him with no warning. He might not even want a fantasy. I guess I need to find that out first._

“Rhys, can you help me for just a minute?,” she called down the stairs in a sultry voice.

“Sure thing; I'll be right up,” he replied, thinking, _Gods, what was that voice all about?_

He found his Feyre standing next to the bed with one hand gesturing toward it. “Welcome to your new favorite store in all of Velaris, love,” Feyre said to him in the same sultry voice, but his attention was still riveted to her body, specifically, the part of her body barely covered by her kimono.

Rhys slowly moved into the room, taking in the full scene which was beginning to make sense to him. His breath was coming faster as the implications of the scene became clear.

“This is your final Solstice gift,” Feyre breathed. “I hope you'll enjoy it.”

“I'm sure I will,” he said in a low voice. “I'm very sure I will. Do you want control of the fantasy?”

“Just to get us started, if it's all right with you,” Feyre said quietly. “After that, we can wing it and we'll be fine.”

Rhys nodded assent, so Feyre began undressing him, hands roaming, lips kissing wherever she wanted. As Rhys became aroused, he started stroking her through the sheer fabric of her kimono. When Feyre came to removing his underwear, she grasped the waistband and carefully slid them down his legs until he could step out of them. She went down on her knees in front of him and took his hardening cock into her mouth, launching into a rhythm guaranteed to prepare him for her plans. He groaned softly as she moved on him, plunging his hands into her hair. When he felt himself getting too close to his climax, Rhys gently brought Feyre up to stand in front of him and brought her in close for a deep kiss.

Feyre gently disengaged only long enough to put his kimono on him, then resumed the kiss, her tongue brushing against Rhys' lips, asking permission to enter. He acquiesced immediately, then brought her even closer as his hands moved slowly and gently up and down her back, moving to gently massage her breasts, breaking the kiss and leaning down to take her taut nipples into his mouth through the open neckline of her kimono. He nipped them, then licked them, hearing her gasp.

“What I thought we'd do is create our own little lingerie store,” Feyre said unevenly. “I don't know if we'll get that far today, and that's fine with me, but someday I think we'd have some fun with helping each other try on our little unmentionables.”

“Mmmm,” Rhys replied, as his hand found her clit and was gently manipulating it. “How would you like it to work?”

By now, Feyre wasn't really interested in talking, but she persevered and explained her thoughts. “Each of us can pick something to put on the other one; we help each other dress, then the other one can do the undressing. I don't think we'll get beyond one outfit today, though. I want you too badly to wait.”

“You pick first,” Rhys smirked. “I'm busy,” his hand still working magic on her clit.

Feyre tried to consider her choices, gave up, and just grabbed the closest pair of male underwear on the bed. She gently disengaged his hand and had him sit on the bed while she brought the shorts slowly up his legs, kissing both legs as the fabric rose. She had him stand while she gently stroked his rear, his balls, and his erect cock, then finished drawing the underwear up. Feyre looked him up and down and groaned in the back of her throat in pleasure. “Gods, but you're a gorgeous, sexy male,” she breathed.

“My turn?,” Rhys asked in a guttural voice.

“Mm-hmm,” Feyre replied.

Rhys chose the pale pink lace set, then slowly removed her kimono. He carefully maneuvered the bralette into place, making sure that her breasts were covered by using his magical hands to massage them into place. Feyre sat on the bed while he stroked her legs before threading her panties over her feet and brought them up her legs. She stood and with a final stroke to her core, causing her breath to hitch, he pulled the panties in place and they crashed together on the bed.

Both of them were fully aroused but were tenderly careful with undressing each other, still playing the part of shoppers in a lingerie store, perhaps. Feyre started by removing Rhys' kimono, kissing over his back, his shoulders, his chest. Rhys removed her bralette, again spending time paying homage to her breasts while pushing her panties aside to stroke her wet core. He inserted a finger and began pumping slowly while Feyre brought his underwear down and tenderly grasped his cock, pumping him to the rhythm he'd set.

After a time, both of them removed the other's underwear and they joined together swiftly. As aroused as they both were, their climaxes came soon and intensely. Rhys pounded into Feyre harder than he'd done before, though causing no pain at all. For her part, Feyre had trouble not tightening herself around him too soon, due to her own arousal. They cried out as they came, fireworks exploding in their cores, and remained close together as they came down from the heights.

“That worked out spectacularly, love,” Rhys spoke quietly while still holding on to Feyre, who cuddled into his side.

“I trust you see why I don't dare take you to a lingerie store,” Feyre teased gently. “Perhaps it wasn't you that I feared would shock the staff, but me.” She smiled impishly at him. “I love you, Rhys Starr. Thank you for indulging my fantasy for us.”

“Oh, it was my pleasure entirely,” Rhys said. “We still have more sets to work with, and I'm looking forward to it—immensely,” he purred.

“I want the props to live here with you, so we'll always know where they are,” Feyre said.

After playing and talking for a time, they returned to the kitchen, considering lunch possibilities. They ended up having what they often did: bread, cheeses, and fruit, washed down with ice water. Returning to the living room, Feyre took one of her sketch books and her drawing pencils from her art case and settled on the davenport to draw. She didn't really have a plan for this sketch, but she just wanted to draw, so she let her nimble fingers and pencils have their way, creating a scene from nature: a quiet pond surrounded by willow trees. Various small animals were scattered throughout the scene, some in plain view, some almost hidden in the surrounding trees, bushes, and greenery. Rhys eventually quit watching her drawing and returned to reading his book. They spent a pleasurable afternoon together, though engrossed in their own activities. Around five o'clock, Rhys set his book down and got up to start cooking dinner for them.

“Can I do anything to help, love?,” asked Feyre.

“If you'd like to, you can make the salad,” Rhys replied. “I thought we'd have Italian spaghetti, hot French bread, and green salad. We can have ice cream for dessert later on. Does that sound all right?”

“That all sounds delicious,” Feyre answered, putting down her pencil and sketch book and going to the kitchen to hep Rhys.

“I made the sauce a few weeks back and froze it,” Rhys commented, “so dinner won't take long at all.” He got a large pan out from a cabinet, filled it with water to cook the spaghetti, then set it on the stove to bring it to a boil. In the meantime, he removed the thawed spaghetti sauce from the refrigerator so it could also be heated through as the spaghetti cooked. Feyre had gathered the greens and other vegetables she would need to make their salad and was chopping it all. Rhys sliced the bread, readying it to warm in the oven. Together, they set the table and just talked until the foods finished cooking and they could sit down to an excellent meal.

“This is so good,” Feyre commented. “I know the salad dressing is your own recipe, but is the spaghetti sauce also your own?,”

“It's sort of a combination of my mom's and mine at this point,” Rhys said. “I found some spices that she didn't use that I thought would add to the flavor of the sauce. I was happy with the result, so I've used the adjusted recipe for a few years now.”

“I so admire your ability to cook,” she remarked. “I can't imagine knowing enough about flavors and spices to even guess what would be good to add to an existing recipe successfully. I'm actually thrilled just to be able to make Cassian's rice recipe. I couldn't begin to create a fully original recipe.”

“It's hard to say what you could do, but you've made a start already by learning to make the rice dish. If you ever want to learn more about it, either Cassian or I would be more than happy to teach you or even just cook with you watching and learning how we do things. I learned a lot by watching my mom, then expanded what I knew by reading about various foods and what you can do with them and by attempting to recreate foods I've liked in restaurants. The efforts were not always successful. Both Cassian and I have had some colossal failures along the way,” Rhys said while smiling crookedly. “It's just a part of the learning process.”

“I might take you up on that someday,” Feyre said. “Especially if I move up here away from my comfort zone of restaurants from which I can get takeout, I'll be limited to frozen dinners if I don't learn to cook. I doubt you'd want me camped on your doorstep every night mewling for dinner.”

_Ask, love, just ask,_ he thought, as he chuckled. “You earn your own dinner with all the help you give me, so don't ever worry about being welcome. You always are. Besides, I love you, so that gets you some added favor.”

Since Rhys was trying to give Feyre the space she needed to make her own decision about if she should move to Velaris, and, if so, when she should do it, he felt that was as far as he could go in encouraging her to do it. He only knew that he was happiest when they were sharing the same living space and he thought that possibly she was reaching the point that she trusted the stability and depth of their relationship enough to take the leap of faith that would bring her to Velaris permanently. And that, just maybe, she was finding the time away from him to be as miserable as he found the time away from her to be. _Please, gods, decide soon, my love_.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

“Remember that gorge with the picnic site we stopped at last fall?,” Rhys asked the following morning as they were having breakfast in the kitchen.

“How could I ever possibly forget it?,” Feyre asked, giving him a kiss on the cheek. “That is one of the happiest memories of my life.”

“Remember that we talked about going up there in the winter and looking at the gorge when it's snow-covered? The roads that far into the mountains are still pretty clear. Would you like to drive up there today and see what it looks like now? I have a digital camera we can use to take photos of the foothills in winter.”

“I'd love to!,” Feyre exclaimed. “You'll see; it will be as beautiful in its winter dressing as it was in the fall.”

“We need to figure out lunch, though,” Rhys commented. “The picnic area will be too cold and windy to enjoy lunch outdoors, I'm afraid.”

“Why don't we bring sandwiches, sliced fruits, and chips from here? We can bring coffee in a Thermos or sodas to drink,” Feyre asked. “We can eat in the car in the little parking lot there if we promise not to spill anything in the SUV,” she said as she smirked. “I'd really appreciate the camera photos—they will help set the colors we'll see in my mind. Besides, it will be too cold for me to draw.”

They quickly finished breakfast, made their lunch and packed it in an insulated cooler, then readied themselves for the drive. Just before they left, Rhys showed Feyre how to use the camera so that she could photograph whatever she wanted along the route.

“We'll probably need to stay on the main road this trip—only the highway is kept cleared and we don't want to get stuck out there this time of year,” Rhys said.

They loaded the SUV, remembering to check and see that they had some emergency supplies, like blankets, flashlight, a snow shovel and sand, granola bars, and bottled water in case the worst did happen and they became stranded. Both of their phones were fully charged, so if they didn't go too far into the mountains, they should be able to maintain a cell signal to call for help if they needed to.

They were able to leave a little before noon, planning to be back by four o'clock; both of them wanted to be down out of the foothills before it got dark. It was a beautiful drive, just as their fall trip was, and both of them enjoyed the scenery with the snow-covered Illyrian mountains as a backdrop.

Driving at a leisurely speed, they reached the gorge they wanted to see around one-thirty in the afternoon. Stepping out of the car, both Rhys and Feyre took in deep breaths of the fresh mountain air. Once again, they had the picnic area to themselves and could see the sights undisturbed. Feyre took the camera from her coat pocket and captured images that she thought might inspire future paintings, as well as images she just enjoyed.

“Let me know if you want pictures of anything, all right?,” she asked Rhys.

“Other than a selfie to prove to the others that yes, we are just silly enough to come up here in the cold, I trust your artistic judgement far more than mine,” Rhys responded.

“Rhys, we've been over this. If you see a scene you enjoy, that's all the qualification it needs. We aren't submitting these shots to a photographic journal—we're preserving memories of a place we love. Wait until we get to the view of the gorge. Some of those shots will be for artistic purposes--I'll be shooting angles and parts of the scene as a whole, in case I want to paint the scene someday. A lot, though, will just be to capture the winter beauty the gorge has to impart.”

They walked slowly over to the gorge viewpoint, and as Rhys had said it would eventually be, it was fully snowed in and the river had a layer of ice over it. “You told me I would see how many shades of white there are if we came up here in the winter,” Rhys smirked. “Do you, as the artist, want to start counting?,”

“Are you deliberately being snarky?,” Feyre asked. “I wanted you to see how beautiful this same scene is in December. Do you really not see it?”

“Yes, Feyre, I do see it. Likely not the same as you do because I don't have your appreciation for color and scene, but I do see beauty in it. If you could explain what you are seeing, maybe it would help me see more?”

As Feyre was taking her pictures of the scene from different angles, she explained to Rhys what she was seeing and contrasted it with what they had seen on their fall trip. “I hate to tell you this, but now I want to come here in both the spring, while the snowmelt is racing through the gorge and the greenery is awakening, and in the summer. I kind of see four separate paintings of this scene in all of its seasons.”

“We can do that, sure,” Rhys responded. “Never let it be said that I neglect the arts, Feyre Darling.”

Feyre just laughed and told him that she was beginning to see that today was a prick day for him. “Go ahead, get it out of your system before bedtime tonight,” she said wiggling her eyebrows.

After Feyre had taken the pictures she wanted to, they returned to the SUV and had a leisurely lunch, then returned home in the late afternoon. After they'd unpacked the SUV and stowed all their gear, Rhys took the camera to upload all the images to his cloud space so Feyre could access them whenever she wanted without having to keep them on her phone all the time. They took hot showers and dressed in warm house clothes, then met at the davenport in the living room to think about what they wanted to do for dinner and the evening.

As they were talking, Rhys got a text from Cassian, asking if he and Azriel could drop by this evening. He texted back, 'Are you guys hungry or something?' Cassian's reply was swift in coming: 'Yes, and we're bringing dinner with us. We'll be there after work so no more snacks or you'll ruin your appetite! Oh, and I know I don't need to tell Feyre, but you be decent if you're downstairs. I want no 'Ewww' moments.'

Rhys confirmed with Feyre that she had no problem with Cas and Az coming over and bringing dinner, then texted Cas that they'd be waiting with bated breath for their arrival.

Cas and Az arrived a little past six o'clock, as promised, and with both of them carrying bags of food that smelled delicious to Feyre. “I cooked dinner in the slow cooker while we were at work,” Cassian explained. “It's a traditional Illyrian casserole that I recently tried and thought you might enjoy. I brought the recipe, Feyre, in case you like it. It's a recipe that you can cut down to two servings or expanded to however many servings you need. The best news is that you already have all the spices you need and will just need to buy the chicken, rice, white beans, and some vegetables.”

“I'm sure I'll love it,” Feyre said. “We were talking last night about me needing to learn more about cooking. Having another recipe is a start,” she smirked.

The males hung their coats on the coat tree, then all of them trooped into the kitchen. Cas and Az unpacked their bags onto the dinner table while Feyre got plates, silverware, and condiments for them. Rhys was in charge of drinks, asking the males if they wanted beer, wine, or ice water.

“Stupid question, brother,” Azriel said, “but I suppose you're asking for Feyre's benefit.” He winked at Feyre who stuck her tongue out at him.

“I was trying to show her that we do know our manners, even if we rarely bother with them, that is true,” Rhys responded while getting beers from the refrigerator. “Feyre, what would you like to drink?”

“Ice water would be great, please,” Feyre answered.

They sat down to an amazing dinner. The casserole was new to Rhys as well as to Feyre and a fair amount of time was spent discussing how it was made; Cassian emailed her the recipe so that he wouldn't accidentally forget to give it to her and Feyre had been making notes on her phone of what they'd discussed for when she tried making it.

“I think my boss would love this. Would you mind if I gave her the recipe? I have to go to the Palace of Thread and Jewels, so I can stop by the Palace of Bone and Salt and get her the spices she would need. She adores slow cooker meals; between her job and raising two active nephews, she doesn't have a lot of cooking time during the week. Her slow cooker is her go-to appliance.”

“No, that's fine with me,” Cassian said. “I'd be honored, actually.”

“I'll give her this recipe and your special rice recipe. That one she could make on the weekend, then heat it Monday. I love leftovers of your special rice, anyway.”

All four of them cleaned up after the meal and stored the leftovers in the refrigerator until Cas and Az left for their homes. Rhys refreshed everyone's beer and Feyre's ice water and they went into the living room to talk.

They had just sat down when Cassian asked Feyre what day she planned to go to the gym with him. Feyre just laughed and told him that she wasn't getting up that early in the morning for a gym run during her vacation.

“Since we wouldn't be using equipment, I could be persuaded to go in at, say, noon on Sunday. Would that meet with my lady's approval? And my lord's?,” he asked with a fair approximation of a smirk as he added Rhys to the arrangement. “I want to do your self defense routine again.”

Feyre looked at Rhys, reading his eyes, and agreed to meet Cassian at his gym on Sunday at noon. Azriel asked if he could join them, since he hadn't seen the routine yet, and, of course, he was welcomed.

“You'll be amazed at what Feyre can do,” Cassian promised. “Last time, she actually knocked me off balance once and she says that she is able to put about half the trained police officers who volunteer at her class on the ground. It's something else.”

“I forgot to tell you, Cassian. Remember the moves you showed me? The ones to force people off balance? I showed them to my instructor, who thanks you profusely, by the way. Anyway, the whole class knows them now, and not only do I succeed much more often, the whole class does. We're gentle with the volunteers, of course, because no one wants anyone hurt in a class situation, but the fact remains, we're all 'escaping' more often. Since this is a self-defense class which might be useful any day of the week, you, my friend, have potentially saved lives and that's no joke. I also am very grateful to you.”

Cassian didn't quite know how to take serious praise; he was obviously flustered but he worked his way through it, thanking Feyre for letting him know.

Azriel found a moment to take Feyre aside and thank her quietly for helping him with his job change and with Rhys. Feyre gave him a hug and told him that any help she'd given was entirely her pleasure to do so and asked if he was at all content with how it worked out. He told her that he hadn't been this happy with a job in years.

“Maybe I wasn't cut out for management,” he said. “I could do it, but I'm happier out of it, at least for now.”

“I'm so glad for you, Az. You deserve that happiness,” Feyre said quietly, giving him another hug.

Rhys brought out cards and poker chips and suggested they play poker, which they did with no small amount of laughter and gamesmanship until the males had to leave since they had to be at work in the morning. Feyre actually came in second to Azriel's first place finish, amazing herself. Rhys ended the night in third place, with Cassian in fourth place, much to his chagrin. “We'll definitely have to have a rematch,” Cassian demanded. “What little honor I have is riding on it!” Everyone laughed and the males left with their few leftovers, saying they would see each other tomorrow night at Rita's.

Feyre and Rhys got some ice cream and returned to the davenport, beginning to plan their day tomorrow. “I still need a cloak or a cape for tomorrow night,” Feyre said, “and I'll make a list of the stuff I'll need to buy Alis for those two recipes. What would you say about going to the Palaces to get everything?”

“That would be fine,” Rhys said. “Would you want to go to Ressina's art store and meet her? Maybe see if there's anything else you can find in her store that you'd like? Since we're already over there, we might as well.”

“We'll see,” Feyre answered. “I'm going to need a lot of prep time to do the dress justice, you'll remember from September, although at least this time Mor didn't say you couldn't touch me after three o'clock—yet,” she smirked. “She has no idea that I'm wearing The Dress, does she? If not, let's keep that little secret so we have our afternoon and early evening to ourselves.”

“The other thing we need to do tomorrow is to get some groceries—I'd want to get about a week's worth, Rhys said. “We can do that at the supermarket that's on our way back from the Palaces, if it's okay with you.”

“Sure; I have no problem with that. Maybe Sunday after the trip to the gym or Monday, if the sidewalks are still clear, I want to walk to the little stores near the arboretum—I have dreams now about their breads so I'd like to get us some. Do you know yet how many days you need to go into the office next week? I'll just plan to go while you need to be gone,” Feyre said.

“We should start putting stuff into calendars so we don't forget them,” Rhys commented. “Tomorrow I need to remote access the office and then I'll have a better idea of what has to be done next week, but I'll try to keep any days I have to go in to a minimum, maybe half days, if I can swing it.”

“Rhys, I want you to do whatever needs to be done to keep the business running smoothly, especially now with the Kallias Insurance software roll out and with your own restructuring project. I'll have enough to do so that I stay out of trouble so don't worry about it.”

“I'm not worried at all,” he responded. “You're actually here. Here in the house. I want to spend every second of that time with you. I promise, I'll do whatever has to be done and won't shirk, but I might delegate some things and be more efficient with what I have to do.”

“What time will the cleaning service be here?,” Feyre asked. “I thought they came on most Fridays?”

“They normally come in the early afternoons. It usually takes them an hour and a half to two hours for the tasks they do. Although it might take less time this week since you like to leave it clean for them,” he teased.

“I just wondered. I thought we'd just sit and have coffee with them this week, so I wanted their job done for them already” Feyre teased back. “Actually, we might not be back home yet when they arrive, but I didn't want to be caught in the shower or something when they're trying to do their job. I just thought I'd ask.”

“I'll stand guard inside the shower and protect your honor,” Rhys said with obviously mock gallantry.

“Right,” Feyre said. “Of course you will. I have nothing to be concerned about. Silly me.” She burst out laughing and picked up their ice cream dishes and the remainder of the bottles and her water glass to take them all to the kitchen while Rhys put away the cards and poker chips.

“Shall we go upstairs and you can start guarding me in the bedroom?,” Feyre asked when they'd met again by the stairs.

“It would be my pleasure,” Rhys told her as they turned out the lights and went upstairs, arm in arm. “You will find me to be a most attentive guard.”

Feyre kissed his cheek, telling him that she couldn't wait to see just how attentive he was. They made slow, sweet love before sleeping in each other's arms through the night.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

“Shall we start with the spices I need to get Alis?,” Feyre asked the next morning when they'd reached the Palaces.

“That's probably the best plan,” Rhys replied. “Do you have your list or are we winging it?”

Feyre laughed and told him that, while Alis was a much better cook than she was, she wasn't in Rhys and Cassian's league, so Feyre definitely had a list of needed spices as well as step by step instructions from Cassian for making the two recipes. She got her fabric shopping bag out from her purse as well as her phone which contained the spice list and they went to work in the Palace of Salt and Bone.

“I really love this Palace,” Feyre told Rhys. “The aromas are heavenly.”

“How is your collection of Illyrian spices doing as kitchen potpourri,?” he asked.

“Very well, thank you so much for asking,” Feyre answered with a grin. “They're doing just what I want. Especially the cabinet they're in smells very Illyrian spice-like.” She winked at him to let him know she'd caught the snark.

Rhys just laughed and they began gathering the short list of spices Feyre would be buying that day. They were soon finished and, after purchasing the spices, proceeded to the Palace of Thread and Jewels.

“I know that you've said that you don't want me buying you jewelry,” Rhys said quietly as they entered the Palace, “but can I show you just one piece? I was buying Amren yet another bauble to add to her hoard when I ran across it and it reminded me of you in your Night Triumphant dress. I'd like you to have it if you agree.”

Feyre looked at him to try to assess how serious this was for him, then gave up because, until she had seen the piece, she couldn't make any judgement. She knew that she really didn't normally care much about jewelry, wearing only his ring and her watch, so buying most jewelry would be a waste of money and she didn't want to feel obligated to wear jewelry he'd bought her if she didn't care about it.

“Sure, we can take a look,” Feyre said. “I was serious about what I told you about me and jewelry, but I do like to look at it for its own sake. Some pieces are gorgeous. Some I might even think I would like to have someday.”

“The store is about halfway through the Palace,” Rhys said while steering them down the main hallway. “We can see the piece I'm talking about in the store window.”

When they reached the correct store window, Feyre immediately recognized the jewelry piece Rhys wanted her to have. It was a set of sterling silver hair combs which had stars and shooting stars depicted on the decorative end. All of the stars were picked out by various shades of faceted blue sapphires. In its understated elegance, even Feyre had to admit that the combs seemed made for the dress she planned to wear to Rita's that night. As well, she could picture them in her hair if she styled it the same way she had worn it the last time she'd worn the dress.

“Oh my,” she said. “Those really are gorgeous, Rhys.”

“Would you like them?,” Rhys asked. “I'd like you to have them, but it's entirely your choice as to whether we buy them or not.”

“Let's go in and talk to the people about them,” Feyre suggested. Rhys readily agreed, so they entered the store and discussed the combs with the very knowledgeable salesperson. He was able to tell them about the silversmith who designed and made them, as well as showing them other pieces that might complement the combs.

Rhys and Feyre thanked him and stepped back to discuss the matter more privately. They agreed on getting the combs and Feyre was considering a sterling silver and sapphire bracelet, also made by the combs' silversmith, using the same shades of sapphires.

“Let's do this,” Feyre began. “I would love to have the combs, Rhys. I really would. But the bracelet was my idea, so I'll buy it. Does that meet with your approval?”

“Actually, Feyre Darling, sadly, it does not. “What meets with my approval is buying the female that I love to distraction a small gift of something she would like to have. This time, I have to tell you that I'm not negotiating. Can this magnificent female see her way clear to accepting this small gift?”

Feyre flushed and made to turn away so that Rhys wouldn't see the tears which had come to her eyes, but he wouldn't let her, not this time. He lightly held her shoulders so that she was facing him and asked her what was wrong.

“Nothing is wrong,” she said quietly. “Everything is right. Aside from letting me wear your mother's ring, I've never received a more beautiful gift than what you are offering, love. I guess I didn't handle that very well, but I do thank you, my love,” she said with a lopsided smile.

Rhys just gathered her into his chest and gently wiped her eyes free of her tears. “You did just fine,” he murmured.

They returned to the salesperson so that Rhys could make the transaction and they left the store.

Rhys kept his arm around Feyre as they strolled trough the Palace in search of a long, warm cape or cloak in a color that would work for the night sky colors of Feyre's dress and her navy blue sandals, plus her sapphire jewelry. Finally, just as they were beginning to lose hope, they found just what Feyre was looking for in a small outerwear store, an ankle length, warm, navy blue cloak in soft wool that fit her perfectly. She bought it immediately and both of them breathed huge sighs of relief—without the correct cloak, there was no way she would have been willing to wear the Night Triumphant dress in the cold winter air of Velaris.

“I need coffee after that experience,” Feyre told Rhys. “Let's get coffee and a snack from the shop over there, then we can get groceries, all right? My treat. Definitely my treat,” she smirked.

Rhys laughed and accepted her offer. They both enjoyed the rest and the atmosphere inside the small shop for a half hour, then made their way back to the car and went on to the grocery store.

They had already talked over meal plans for the rest of Feyre's stay so they were able to buy what was on the list they had made, giving them food through the following week. Rhys took a route home that took them past the small stores near the arboretum; Feyre had planned to walk there, but, as Rhys explained to her, this time of year, snow could fall at any time and the sidewalks might not be clear for her to have a pleasant walk. She accepted his reasoning, so they stopped at the bakery she liked and stocked up on breads and a few pastries.

It was a bit past lunch time when they arrived back home, finding that the cleaning service had already been there and left. That relieved Feyre, especially. They had only a few hours before Feyre would have to begin her preparations for the evening out, so she was glad not to have to worry about the cleaning people being there at that time. Feyre and Rhys had sandwiches and fruit for lunch, then sat down on the davenport in the living room to watch their Netflix series. After arranging themselves so that they were laying in each other's arms, they fell asleep instead, waking up just when Feyre had planned to take her shower.

Feyre stretched and yawned, apologizing for falling asleep, but Rhys pointed out that he'd fallen asleep at the same time. “We need the energy to get through a night at Rita's anyway,” he commented.

Feyre kissed him softly and disengaged herself from him. “Is it all right if I borrow your robe?,” she asked.

Rhys assured her that it was fine, so she gathered her new jewelry and took it upstairs to put it with her dress and its other jewelry, then took a long, hot shower. She dressed in Rhys' robe and finger-styled her hair, letting it air dry so its natural curl would show. Her plan was to use the hair combs to pull the hair back from her face, letting the curls cascade down her back. After picking up the bath and laying out her dress, shoes, and accessories, she went downstairs to see if Rhys wanted help with making dinner.

“Given that we're going to Rita's, even though we aren't planning to stay until closing time, I was thinking that we'd make hamburgers and French fries,” Rhys suggested. “It's quick to make and easy to clean up after, plus it's a good mid-weight dinner in case we drink over there.”

“That sounds wonderful to me,” Feyre answered. “If you'll cook, I'll clean the kitchen while you shower, all right?”

After a delicious dinner and cleaning the kitchen, Feyre went upstairs to do her makeup and dress for the club. Her makeup was more extensive than normal, given that they were going to a club. She included eye shadow, eyeliner, and a dramatic lip gloss to her normal blush and mascara. After dressing, she did her hair, then her jewelry, quietly thrilled with the look of her new hair combs and bracelet, along with the earrings she had bought with the dress in September. After putting on her sandals, she put what she needed to in her evening clutch and went downstairs to show Rhys the results. As she'd hoped, he was nearly speechless again, though not as badly as he had been in September when she'd last worn the dress for him.

“Gods of the Cauldron, Feyre, you are so gorgeous!,” he breathed. “Can I at least kiss you? If I don't touch your hair?”

“Certainly, but let me get a tissue first,” answered Feyre. “You might end up with lip gloss on you, which is probably not what you'd planned on tonight.” She quickly got a tissue, then took him into her arms, kissing him deeply.

“Thank you, my love,” she said. “I'm glad you like how it turned out. The hair combs and bracelet are spectacular.” She carefully wiped his lips, then went to put her phone in her clutch and put on her cloak.

Rhys, in a black silk shirt, black slacks, and black boots, was immaculately groomed, as always. He put on a black winter overcoat with his new muffler from Feyre and they were soon on the road to Rita's. They arrived a little early, but decided to go in, given the cold temperature outside that evening. The parking lot was clear of snow, so he didn't have to let Feyre out at the door while he parked the car. She much preferred to walk in from the parking lot with him to waiting by the door in front of the club surrounded by strangers.

On entering, Feyre got a taste on the noise level she could expect for the evening. Rhys laughed and told her that if she had anything to say, it was best to say it before they went into the club itself. They dropped their outerwear off with an attendant who glanced at Feyre, then looked again. Rhys saw it, though Feyre apparently did not. He was relieved, given their talk about people's reaction to her. _Hopefully, she will remain blissfully unaware for the entire evening,_ he thought.

The attendant gave them their vouchers to pick up their outerwear later and told Rhys that Mor wanted him to know that they were at their regular table. Rhys thanked him as Feyre took his arm and they entered the club room. Aside from the noise of the music and people trying to converse, Feyre noticed that the huge room was dimly lit by recessed ceiling lights over the tables and over the dance floor. The dance floor was full of people dancing in pairs, trios, and larger groups, as well as the occasional lone dancer. The friendliness of the atmosphere meant that all were welcomed on the dance floor. Tonight's music was hosted by an energetic DJ who encouraged everyone to get out on the floor. Rhys and Feyre almost took a turn on the floor right then, but decided that they should at least see if Mor, Andi, or any of the others were at the table before they danced.

They were threading their way toward the table to which the attendant had directed Rhys and Feyre when they heard Mor squealing in happiness, although they couldn't see her. She had apparently seen them, however, as they definitely heard Feyre's name in her noise, and something like “She actually wore it!' They gradually got to the table, the club being crowded on a Friday evening, and found everyone there already. Mor enveloped them in hugs and Andi waved and smiled. Cassian and Azriel were sitting with two very pretty females Feyre did not know. The males shook hands with Rhys, Cassian hugged Feyre, and sly Azriel said in her ear as he hugged her, “See, Cassian and I are still able to talk. Progress, eh? You are still drop-dead gorgeous, though. And in that dress? Unfair, Feyre, unfair. You almost got me again.” Feyre blushed furiously and kissed him on the cheek before taking the chair Rhys offered her.

Rhys went for their drinks, wine for Feyre and whiskey for himself, while the males introduced their dates to Feyre, following which the rest of the group went off to dance.

Rhys returned to the table with their drinks and asked Feyre if she would like to dance. She agreed, and they joined the throng on the floor, dancing to the driving beat of the music. Over the course of the evening, she danced with Cassian, with Azriel, with Mor, with Andi, and with Mor and Andi, but all of the slow dances belonged to her Rhys. Rhys danced with Mor, with Andi, with Cas' date and Az's date, but the rest of the time, if Feyre was dancing with someone else, he was content to remain at the table and watch her enjoyment of the evening play out. Around midnight, Rhys and Feyre left them, telling all of them what a good time they had had and went home.

As soon as they collected their outerwear, they went outside and were assaulted by the comparative silence of the city. It was beginning to snow, so they hurried to the car and drove home to the warmth of the house. As soon as they got inside and hung up Feyre's cloak and Rhys' overcoat, Feyre laid her clutch on the side table in the entry as Rhys took her in his arms and kissed her soundly, tongue licking at her lips, asking permission to enter. She groaned softly as she opened her lips to him and drew him closer to her.

“I've been wanting to do that all night long,” Rhys confessed.

“I was looking for a secluded corner in the club to take you into, myself,” Feyre said. “Do they put pheromones in the drinks or what?

“Don't laugh, but Mor told me once that there's a particular wall in a secluded area either in the club or near it where people are said to go for quickies if they just can't wait. In the cold, I didn't want to ask you to endure that, though,” he concluded gallantly. “Besides, apparently there is often a waiting line for it—not our style, I think.”

Feyre laughed softly. “You're right about it not being our style, but I might have at least considered it before turning it down regretfully. That's how badly I wanted you. I still do.”

“Do you want anything to eat or shall we just put the phones on the chargers and get some water to take upstairs?,” Rhys asked.

“Maybe we can eat after we make love,” Feyre answered. “Right now, you're all I want.”

Rhys released a guttural sound as he put the phones on their chargers. He moved fast to the kitchen to get their water and caught up to Feyre as she was turning off downstairs lights and moving to the stairs.

“Getting a head start, my love?” he murmured.

“No, I wouldn't dream of it,” she smirked as they walked upstairs.

After gently undressing each other, they made passionate love, satisfying each other to their very cores.

“I had a wonderful time tonight, Rhys,” Feyre murmured sleepily as they settled for the night.

“I did, too, love,” Rhys answered. “I did, too.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

Rhys and Feyre slept late on Saturday morning, waking slowly to a dark, overcast day, perfect for staying home. Neither one was particularly interested in looking out the bedroom window to see how much snow had fallen overnight, but Feyre dared a glimpse through the window when she got up to go to the bath. “It looks like about four inches fell,” she told Rhys.

“Good,” he said while yawning. “That's not enough to snow people in, but I'm glad we got groceries yesterday anyway. We've been lucky it hasn't snowed before while you've been here—it isn't that much fun to walk in, but if you want outside time today, I'd be glad to teach you the finer points of snowball fighting. Then we can get the rest of the family over here and have a battle.”  


“Making snowpeople is more my speed,” Feyre responded. “But thanks for the offer. Someday I might take you up on it, but I think I'd rather look at it from the comfort of the warm house today.”  


She finished freshening up in the bath just in time to let Rhys in for his own freshening up, and dressed in a warm sweater and leggings, complete with lingerie in case the day brought interesting developments. After making the bed and picking up the bedroom, she went downstairs and made them coffee, then checked her phone for messages only to find that the message app had ballooned with messages. She groaned softly and decided that she couldn't deal with them until she'd had at least one cup of coffee, if not two. She carefully avoided opening it and went straight to her internet news sites, thinking that checking email would be as bad in its own way as the message app. She sighed in relief when she saw that no big stories had debuted in the news, it being a weekend, so she was content in knowing that the sun rose and snow fell on Velaris, and she was staying in with Rhys, so all was right with her world.  


Feyre heard Rhys coming downstairs, so she poured his coffee and set it by the sugar bowl with a spoon. He came up behind her and she leaned back into his chest, reveling in the sense of his strong arms holding her and his face buried in her hair, just breathing in her scent. It gave her a heady feeling, knowing that another person would feel so strongly about her as Rhys obviously did, and to know that she so obviously felt as strongly about him. _We are so very happy,_ she thought. _So happy and content together. We are so lucky to have this, even if I keep telling him and myself that we deserve it. May the Cauldron let it continue._  


She gently turned in his arms and inhaled his scent, much as he had hers, centering herself before kissing him good morning. “Did you sleep well, love?,” Feyre asked.  


“As always, when we're together,” Rhys responded as he untangled them and sat with his coffee while he checked his own phone. Feyre laughed to herself as she noticed him glancing at the sheer number of messages waiting for him in his own message app and shuddering.  


“I decided that I would need at least one cup of coffee, if not two, before I could possibly tackle all the messages,” Feyre commented.  


“That is an awesome strategy that I will borrow,” he replied. “I need to remote access the office today so I might even wait until I finish that before looking at messages. That's a daunting number of texts.”  


“Since you need to hit up the office, can I make us cereal and toast with some bananas for breakfast?, Feyre asked. “It would be much faster than cooking and we haven't had it for a while.”  


“That does sound good,” Rhys answered. “Thank you, my love. I'll just ease into the day while you work,” he smirked.  


Feyre rose and clapped him on the shoulder as she gathered what was needed for their breakfast. “You'll note that I didn't offer to cook for you,” she remarked. “Perhaps that's because it wouldn't be good for the sake of your health...but it could also be that I'm putting you in your place. After all, I asked Alis for her quiche recipe and we have everything here we'd need to make it. Sadly, I'm not sure I feel inspired at the moment, however,” she said, arching an eyebrow.  


Rhys just laughed at her and rose to help put breakfast together. They ate companionably while they discussed the previous evening at Rita's. Feyre reminded Rhys about the secluded wall he had said that Mor told him of. “You've never needed to know where it was or been curious to see if it's a real thing?,” she asked. “It sounds fascinating in an exhibitionist sort of way. Anyway, the way I felt last night, the cold air would have been the only thing that stopped me from looking for it—with you.”  


“Speaking seriously, Feyre, I'm just not much into clubbing, I guess. Once in a long while, Mor talks me into going, but I normally just stay for a couple of drinks and a few dances, then escape, feeling as though I'd been set free. Truthfully, I never met anyone that made me even curious about it—before you, that is. Last night was interestingly difficult until we got home, to say the least. But it was too damned cold to consider finding this wall. Our favorite bits would have gotten frostbite and I wasn't interested in explaining it to people at the emergency room of the hospital. See, I can delay gratification if there's a good reason for it,” he smiled winningly at her.  


It was Feyre's turn to laugh. “You're making real progress here, Prick. I'm proud of you,” she smirked and began to gather the breakfast things. “Why don't you start work and I'll take care of the kitchen. I thought I'd draw some more when I finish that. Shall I make us more coffee?,” she asked.  


“Hmmm. Maybe just set it up and we'll see what we feel like after a while?,” Rhys suggested. He helped her finish clearing the dinner table and clean it off so he could do his work at the table, then set up his computer and got to work while Feyre cleaned their few dishes and set up the coffee maker for later on if they wanted it. She lightly brushed his neck with her hand as she walked by the table to get her drawing gear; Rhys grabbed her hand and kissed it tenderly before rubbing it along his clean-shaven jaw.  


“We should throw in the towel and buy a deserted island somewhere,” he commented. “An island with a cell tower.”  


“Oh, it's much too late for that, I'm afraid,” Feyre replied. “I have already decided that I can't live without the Rainbow and Sevenda's; that's entirely on you, so you'd have to talk them into relocating with us being their only customers.”  


“We can get a float plane so you can visit them to your heart's content,” Rhys countered. “Just think about it in case we win the lottery, okay?”  


Feyre leaned down and kissed the top of his head, telling him that she certainly would consider it, because it did sound like a lovely plan.  


It took Rhys a couple of hours to work through his computer work and his messages; Feyre had also handled her messages and email before beginning a sketch of one part of the gorge as they had seen it on Thursday. They worked in companionable silence, then had lunch when Rhys had finished his work for the day and packed his computer away. Feyre picked up her sketching materials and they moved to the living room. She set it all down on the coffee table before she sat down and turned to Rhys, telling him that she would like to talk something over.  


Rhys immediately froze, wondering if something was wrong; Feyre noticed and hastened to tell him that it wasn't a bad thing, necessarily, but just something she had been thinking about and wanted his honest response about it.  


“I don't mean to just spring this on you,” Feyre began, taking one of Rhys' hands in her own, “but I can't think of a way to gently work up to it, so I will just ask you what you would think if I wanted to move to Velaris permanently? I would need to get a job here first, of course, and settle my affairs in Adriata, so we'd have time to adjust to the idea. Several weeks, likely, if I do this.” She looked at him expectantly.  


“Nothing would make me happier, except if we could make it happen today,” Rhys instantly responded. “Have you thought about coming to work at Starr?,” he asked seriously.  


“Yes, I did think it over for a long, long time, Rhys. Much as I would have loved working with all of you on a personal level as well as thinking that Starr would be a good company to work for in general, you couldn't afford me,” Feyre was quick to answer, as though she'd already considered the possibility and discarded it. “On a salary level, sure, no real problem, though I don't come cheap. But consider what the other people working at Starr would think of me, the boss' female friend with no experience in this industry working here all of a sudden. I wouldn't be willing to hide my relationship with you. If the job were anything other than the lowest entry level position you have, imagine the morale issue that you'd face. The resentment level would go up in direct proportion to the position I would be in on your ladder—it would look like I took a job that I hadn't earned. I won't let that happen because you seem to have a really good team here and I want it to stay that way, especially where you are enlarging and restructuring the company to give software development its own division and you have Azriel stepping down from upper management. That will cause enough upheaval, even if it's for a positive reason.”  


Rhys questioned, “Even if the job you took was in the new division?”  


“Even if. Even if the job is newly created and has never been staffed before. You have to look at this from your people's point of view. Every open position you have here, whether existing or brand new, is looked on as an opportunity for someone on your staff by your people. I don't know your organization at all, and I'm just speaking from what I've seen elsewhere. From what I have seen elsewhere, you can hire from the outside, but it's best to give your existing staff an opportunity to apply for any open position and give them a fair shot at it, only hiring from the outside if the outside candidate is superior. If not, promote from within. There's much less resentment that way, and any new hire will have a better chance of fitting into the org if everyone thinks they've been treated fairly.”  


“The rest of my family works here and it's going well. Would you have a problem working for me where we're together now? Is that where some of this is coming from? That I would be a little higher on the org ladder?,” Rhys thought he'd zeroed in on the problem, only to find out that he wasn't even close.  


Again, Feyre was quick to respond, asking carefully, “Were all the people in your family not your first hires? That makes a huge difference, Rhys. To your staff, your upper management team was a unit from the start, plus they've proved themselves in their roles over the years. My joining the company in any capacity but the lowest position would not be that situation at all.

“No, Rhys; I would be happy and proud to work for you. I wouldn't want your responsibilities as a CEO, at least not right now, so working **for** someone is what I choose to do. I think we might even work well together, if it just involved you and your family. But it doesn't involve just this small group. It involves a very large, disparate group of individuals, all of whom have their own individual lives, abilities, hopes, and dreams. You and the others have molded them into a highly motivated team which makes your company run smoothly and profitably. I can't risk blowing that up. Please understand,” she begged.

“My working elsewhere in a non-competing firm is really the best idea, I believe, for all of us. I've looked around at the job websites and there are a fair number of admin positions open in Velaris. Some of them sound pretty interesting.”

“Would you at least be willing to talk to Mor or to Mor and me on a more formal basis before you seriously job hunted? At the March dinner, both of us were shocked at how much depth you showed in the knowledge of how SLI operates, why one software application would work for Division A but not Division B, that Division C had different needs altogether and tell us Division C's needs. You were able to articulate those needs for all of them and see the potential values and drawbacks of the various packages we discussed immediately and make decisive judgements about them That, to us, said that you were upper management material. At the time, we didn't know that you weren't in upper management at SLI and wondered if you were.

“I'd like to set up a formal meeting in one of our offices and discuss your prospects so that you see that you have additional strengths and options in a job search. It's perfectly fine if you would rather not pursue management, but you'd at least know of some additional selling points for yourself. I want it to be a formal meeting so that we all grasp the importance of what's being discussed.”

“I don't know,” Feyre gently teased. “I thought we accomplished rather a lot at Sevenda's that night, but if you insist on an office setting, I could bend that far, I guess,” she smirked.

“You'll do a lot to get back to Sevenda's, won't you?,” Rhys asked. “I am so going to tell her that, Feyre Darling.”

“Okay, how about this, Prick? Can we schedule a meeting in whoever wants to show off their office the most's office for late in a workday, then have Andi meet us either at Starr or at Sevenda's and we can accomplish both goals? My treat.” Feyre stuck out her tongue then smiled winningly at him.”

“I'm not sure why I haven't yet learned not to bargain with you?,” Rhys said, throwing up his hands. “Although at least this time it's a fairly even bargain so I don't feel too badly. Changing the subject just a little, have you thought about pursuing your art full-time?,” Rhys asked.

Feyre thought for a minute and responded, “I need more experience in art, and most probably I would need art classes to become good enough at it to justify the expense. That takes money, so I would need to work for a while to save for living expenses, the expense of supplies, the cost of classes, and so on. Plus, I enjoy working at a job and just painting in my free time.”

“I could help with expenses,” suggested Rhys.

“Yes, you could and you would, but...you would be running into my need for independence. Maybe someday I would think about it, but for now, thank you from the bottom of my heart; I love you for offering, but I'm not really even ready to take the plunge into full-time art. I want to see if I even have it in me to do it—it hasn't been that long since art came back to me. I don't trust it to stay yet. I'd want to see if it stays for a while longer before I made that leap. It's been a long-time dream of mine to retire somewhat early and paint, but it's a nebulous dream at the moment, thinking that retirement is decades away. As I said, I would need to see if my art is still there closer to that time in my life. I'm just pathetically grateful to have it back for right now, thanks to you and Mor, and I'm not making any demands of it in the area of a dependability nature that it might not be able to give.”

“Understood,” Rhys said. “Just be aware that I'm more than willing to either give or loan you what you need. If I loan it to you, you'd retain your independence, right?”

“A loan from you specifically is a good compromise between an outright gift, which is excessive in my view, and my base position of continuing to work and save for the eventual goal of retiring early,” Feyre responded. “I wouldn't be quite as independent if we did it this way as I would be if I got a bank loan, but in a few years, I might be in a better position to know just what funding I would need and maybe we'd be able to swing it. For now, though, thank you so much for thinking of it—you've made me very happy and I love you so very much, but I want to work at a job for a while longer.

“If anyone says anything to you about why I wouldn't be working at Starr, and I'm sure that at least Mor and Cassian will at least be tempted to, just tell them that I'm being too independent again and that you couldn't change my position this time,” Feyre continued. “I can take the pressure of anyone's disapproval of my position on this, but I want you to understand, and maybe even agree with me, even if today is much too soon for agreement. If you think the family won't understand, then I'd like you to set up a meeting for me with them, so I can explain and we can get it all out in the open before I move up here and really change the dynamic.” Feyre sighed.

“We might as well tackle the other elephant in the room. If I were to get a job up here and actually move to Velaris, I would like it to be to my own place, at least for a while,” Feyre stated.

“That's your decision, of course,” Rhys answered stiffly. “Would you tell me why you won't just move in with me?”

“It's due partially to the independence thing,” Feyre answered, again taking Rhys' hand in her own small one and holding it tightly. “I'm still getting used to being on my own again. But, a larger component is concern about the level of stress this move alone will put on our relationship. I love you, and I don't want to do anything that I don't have to do that might screw us up. Think about it, please? If I move up here, we'd be going from seeing each other once every couple of weeks or so to potentially seeing each other at least some part of every day.

“If I were to just move in with you all of a sudden when I moved up here, much as I'd love to do it this very day, that's a pretty radical shift in togetherness. Suddenly, we aren't just visiting each other for short bursts of time. We'd be together for stretches of time every day. We'd be working out a shared workload for the household chores: the cooking, dishes, laundry, grocery shopping, all that good stuff. We'd be sharing space between the belongings you have plus whatever I brought to Velaris. Things like that, even if we resolve them in short order, still provide stress to the relationship.

“You know good and well that we'll be more or less living together the instant I arrive, and it doesn't matter whose place we'd be staying at. I actually do **not** want to spend another night away from you ever again in our natural lifetimes. The difference is that my having my own place for a while allows us to get used to being together all the time without some of the other stressors that will appear when I eventually move in. It takes one stressor off of that pile. It's an escape valve for us in case either of us needs to be alone for a little while as we adjust.”

Feyre brought Rhys' hand up to her lips and gently kissed it, then kissed him just as gently.

“I don't want you feeling hurt or rejected, especially right after discussing the job issue. I can see why you would; I would as well. I would like you to understand that the job thing is not a rejection of you but rather an embrace of you, your family, and your company. I'm trying to honor all of it in the only way I can by not messing the org up and leaving all of you with a big pile of personnel morale problems. I do need to work, for my own sanity as well as for money; I've discovered that my income is fairly handy most days, and it will be even more handy with the Rainbow so close. It's just best that I don't work at Starr.

“More than the job thing, though, I want you to understand and believe that I'm trying to take care of **us** by getting my own place for a while. I wouldn't buy a place and would likely sign just a short lease, but I think we wouldn't be sorry in the end if we handled the move this way.

“What are your thoughts? All of them, including the hurt and rejection ones. I want us to be able to talk this out. Please, just try to understand that I don't mean to hurt you, I am definitely not rejecting you in any way, and I am not rejecting your family or your business. Rather, I am trying to minimize any upheaval my living and working in Velaris would cause so that we all stay together, including the people from your company.” Feyre looked at him expectantly.

“First of all, just how long did it take you to figure all this out?, Rhys asked incredulously. “I'm amazed you didn't have slides for the presentation, though,” he gently teased.

Feyre laughed and admitted to having been thinking about it as a 'what if' issue since September.

“I'm sorry I had no slides; assuredly, that is a major flaw for a lead admin's presentation. I should have done a better job and I own that. I'll get some together later and send them to you or something. Most of them will say 'I love you' and 'I love us,' but I'll use different fonts and colors to add spark to them,” she smirked.

Rhys leaned in, putting his arms around her and kissed her deeply. “It's going to take me a while to process all you told me, so we might have to talk about it more than once,” he began.

“For one thing, I respect the rock-solid logic of your arguments and I especially appreciate the concern you've shown for Starr and its people, Fey. I hadn't thought about it from their point of view, and you make good points about how they might be expected to react. That's one of the things we might have to talk about later, though. For now, I will admit that, while it does hurt, your explanation has changed my perception from the hurt of rejection to the sting of disappointment that we can't just jump into the deep end of the pool and swim our way through whatever comes up.” He scrubbed his hand through his hair.

“I want you to know that I accept your decisions, even if I'm disappointed. From a logical standpoint, you're too damned right, but from an emotional one, they're harder to deal with, but I will deal. I love you, Fey, and my end goal is for us to be together as soon as we can. You're right to be concerned, though. We've both had enough bad experiences in the past to take it slowly enough to build the relationship and not flame out. I will say, though, that I will do a lot better when you're up here in the city **somewhere** and I can see you more often, every day if it's possible. And hopefully spend every single one of our nights together at your place or mine.”

“It's good to know that we're together on our sleeping arrangements at least,” Feyre gently teased. “Seriously,though, love, if we can agree on even just that right now, I have hope that we can make this whole thing work out well for us. That we both know that this one thing is very important to both of us. You have no idea how much comfort I draw from being in your arms all night long.”

“I draw just as much comfort from holding you, Fey. I want it for us as soon as possible for all time.” Rhys kissed her tenderly and they just sat together in each other's arms for a time. Eventually, he asked if they needed coffee or stiff drinks and a snack.

Feyre just smiled wanly and told him that, speaking just for herself, coffee and one of the pastries they had bought yesterday would be wonderful. Rhys kissed her again and got up to make the coffee while she went to the bath.

After a quiet dinner, they read and watched a little TV, emotionally spent after their afternoon talk. The happiness of having Feyre move to Velaris had been tempered by her choices for her work and housing in Rhys' case, and by his reaction to her choices in Feyre's case. Both knew that the situation would eventually settle down, likely in a short time, but it **had** been a trying conversation for both of them so they went to bed and just held each other close all night.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

Feyre and Rhys woke slowly and were very careful around each other the next morning. They had coffee, ate lightly in view of the upcoming gym visit, and talked quietly. It wasn't that either one was angry with the other, but they were kind of wary. With Feyre moving to Velaris, their relationship would be entering a new phase, and both of them knew it. It implied that they were becoming more serious about each other, for one thing. It wasn't surprising that they were feeling some stress, especially where Feyre's plans weren't everything Rhys had hoped for and his reaction to those plans wasn't everything she had hoped for. They were both mature enough to give it some time to see if they needed to discuss the situation, or if the stress would bleed off naturally as they got used to the idea of Feyre moving and to what home she was moving, but it might be uneasy for them for at least a short while.

It soon became time for them to head to Cassian's gym where Feyre and Rhys met Cassian and Azriel a few minutes before noon; the males were already prepared for the workout, dressed in sweats and sneakers. Feyre was in sweats with her hair braided and pinned in a bun on top of her head, to keep it out of her way as well as to prevent it from being grabbed and used to detain her. She changed from her boots into sneakers and joined the three males near an exercise mat.

“How would you like this session to go, Cas?,” she asked. “Do you just want to go through the routine or do we want to teach these two lightweights some useful stuff, or what?,” she smirked at the two 'lightweights.'

“Tell you what,” began Cassian. “Let's warm up, then start with a runthrough of your routine, then we'll see if they feel up to the obvious struggle of learning some new moves.”

“Agreed,” Feyre said as they both began stretching.

“We're thinking of getting some coffee and doing some shopping,” Azriel called out. “Text if you finish up early, okay?”

Feyre made shooing motions with her hands and Cassian just laughed. “I didn't know you were such Illyrian babies,” he crooned. “That's fine, totally fine and normal. We'll let you know after we've finished and had lunch.”

Although Feyre had thought that Azriel was kidding, he and Rhys did leave, surprising her, but she put it out of her mind and began her self defense training routine with Cassian pacing her. When they got to the point that she was ready to practice her moves against a mock assailant, Rhys and Azriel had returned to watch. She stood loosely as though she were standing on the street deciding where to go next. She remained aware of where the three males were and what they were doing, however. Cassian made a quick move to try to grab her from behind, saying, “So, Feyre, when are you moving to Velaris?,” intending to break her concentration on self defense.

Feyre broke his hold almost instantly and, using a move he had taught her in November, had him completely off balance. She ran to the other end of the mat, and told Cassian, “Soon. And that's one for me. I'm safe.”

“Let's go back just a bit,” said Cassian. “What does 'soon' mean?”

It means that I will be moving here when I've made the arrangements I have to make, likely in several weeks to a couple of months.” She looked at Rhys to try to judge his reaction to her announcement; he subtly nodded at her in approval. He trusted her in what she decided to tell his family.

“Are you coming to work with us at Starr?,” Azriel asked. “I'd love to have you working there. You're enough of a smartass to fit right in.”

“Actually, Az, no; I'll find a job at a non-competing company. We spent a long time talking about my working there and I decided that it would be best if I worked elsewhere. We can talk about it sometime if you want, but here isn't the place,” Feyre said seriously.

“Yeah, I'd like to be in on the talk,” Cassian said. “I was looking forward to having you there, too.”

“Thank you both for making me feel welcome. I really do appreciate it. Let's do this. After our workout, let's get takeout for lunch, and if it's fine with Rhys, we'll go back to the house and discuss it.” She looked at Rhys, who nodded acceptance.

“Back to it, Cassian. I'm up 1-0. Don't bother trying to break my concentration this time—it throws yours off,” she smirked at him.

Cassian tried grabbing her from every angle he could think of that didn't compromise his own balance and failed to hold her. She was able break his hold every time, to put him on the ground twice, and to put him off balance long enough to get away four additional times. Since Cassian was more able than most assailants, Feyre had done very well against him, better than in November, thanks to the additional moves meant to throw an assailant off balance that he had shown her.

“Recently, we've been working some on how best to handle an attack that involves a knife,” Feyre told them. “Obviously, if you can, just as if the assailant has a gun, you want to get away, far away, as fast as you can, but sometimes you have to contend with a knife at your throat or in a stabbing position before you can get away. My instructor thought it was best if we had some training in that area, too. I'm going to miss that class when I move up here.”

Cassian gave her an odd look and asked for the name and contact information for Feyre's instructor; she agreed to text it to him and nothing more was said on the matter.

Feyre asked Rhys and Azriel if they wanted to participate in the workout, but both of them declined politely, saying that if she could best Cassian, they would be easy marks not worthy of her attention. Besides, they both felt that they looked pretty good that day and didn't want to get mussed. Feyre laughed and went to change into her boots. They discussed the various takeout options and agreed on Chinese food as the best post-workout choice of the options, so she and Rhys stopped at a nearby restaurant and got a fairly large spread. They stopped at a little market and picked up additional beer and sodas, then headed home to find that Cassian and Azriel had gotten there already and set the dinner table in the kitchen for all of them.

Lunch was quickly laid out and all of them served themselves from the food as well as the beverages that Rhys and Feyre had bought. They talked about inconsequential things, teasing and laughing all through the meal. After they'd eaten their fill, Rhys and Feyre put the leftovers in the refrigerator, then loaded the dishes in the dishwasher. They settled down in the living room with fresh drinks and Feyre explained her reasoning behind her decision not to work at Starr and why she came to that decision. She emphasized that Rhys had tried to argue her out of that position but her position remained firm: that, for the good of Rhys and the family, as well as the morale of the company, it was best for her to work for a non-competing company. She concluded by telling them that she had found a number of interesting job opportunities on various job search web sites that she would be exploring.

Azriel spoke first. “I fully understand what you're doing and why, Feyre, and if you need any help, references, or anything, really, just let me know. I'll be glad when you're up here for good.”

Cassian took a little longer to convince, but he eventually accepted Feyre's decision and made the same offer of help as Azriel did. Feyre breathed a silent sigh of relief that neither of them asked about her planned living arrangement. Her explanation on that matter had been meant only for Rhys; anyone else would be told that it was just her decision to start her time in Velaris in her own place and that she and Rhys would work it out when they agreed that it was time for them to actually live together in actual fact, rather than staying together at one or the other of their places all the time. When they were ready to live together in one home, not two. She was glad not to have to go into it today, however.

The males left around six o'clock with a wave and a promise to see each other soon. Rhys and Feyre collapsed on the davenport and promised each other that they were staying in the rest of the evening and they weren't answering phones, though they might manage to text someone if it was important. That reminded Feyre to text Cassian the name, email, and phone number of her defense instructor as well as a link to his web site for background if Cassian needed it. The site included descriptions of the classes the male taught, and Feyre gave Cassian the name of her specific class. That task accomplished, she locked her phone and put it on the charger.

“So,” Feyre said. “Dinner. I'm not enthused.” She leaned in to kiss Rhys on the cheek.

“Neither am I,” Rhys responded. “We did eat lunch late but we'll probably need something more than ice cream tonight. What if we give it an hour or two, then have cheese, fruit, and bread? Something small like that?”

“That sounds like just the thing,” Feyre answered. “Do you wanna share a shower beforehand?”

Rhys quickly stood and held his hand out for Feyre to grab. He pulled her to her feet and they made their way upstairs to the bedroom where Rhys was delighted to find lingerie hiding under Feyre's sweats. He took his time carefully removing it, then massaging and stroking her in all of her magical places as she was removing his clothing just as carefully. When both were satisfied that the clothing was off, they entered the shower and lazily washed each other, then joined together, loving each other until they were sated.

Returning downstairs, they got some ice water and returned to the davenport to watch more of their series on Netflix, cuddling together under an afghan. Rhys mentioned to Feyre that he had set his work schedule for the week.

“I'll work until noon tomorrow and Tuesday, then take Wednesday and Thursday off and work Friday,” he said. “Is that all right with you?”

“Of course,” Feyre replied. “I have plenty do do here. Maybe I'll be too busy to return your texts asking me if I miss you. Sent at nine-thirty am. After you left the house a little before eight o'clock.” She winked at him.

Rhys gathered her into a hug, telling her that the only reason he texted her then was because he missed her and wanted to be home with her.

“I know, love, and I missed you, too, but I'm not going to complicate your work life with it. I'm just going to take it out on you in the bedroom and the shower,” Feyre wiggled her eyebrows at him.

“See, that's one of the million or so things I love about you, Feyre Darling. You always make the consequences so fitting for the transgression,” he smirked. “Anyway, do you care which day we meet with Mor, then go on to Sevenda's? We'll do that one day and on the other day, when I get home from work, we'll take a look at the room we want to turn into a studio and see what work we need to have done to it to make a proper studio for you. The room with the north light is down the hall from our room, the last door on the right. If you can tear yourself away from missing me tomorrow, go ahead and take a look and see if you think we can make it what you want.”

“Okay, I'll take a look tomorrow. From eight o'clock to nine-thirty, my calendar has 'missing Rhys horribly' on it, but I can fit looking at the studio-to-be in following that task,” Feyre said seriously, then laughed at the notion. “As for the meeting, I have no preference, though. Either day is fine. I have a dress with me that will go well with boots and a winter coat, so I'm all set there.”

“Did I tell you that you were magnificent at the gym today?” Rhys asked. “You were so confident in your moves against Cassian. Cassian! I know how hard it is to take him down. You were about two steps away from subduing him.”

“Oh, I wasn't at all close to subduing someone of his size and ability,” Feyre said. “This training doesn't involve learning those techniques, I'm afraid. It's impressed upon the students over and over that we have one job: break away and run to safety. That's it. That one job. Once we are safe, then we call the police who will likely send more than one officer, all of whom **have** had training in subduing people. So, with that minor distinction, the class has done a lot to build my self confidence on many levels. I've been able to take care of myself financially for several years now, of course, I can manage my living needs like getting food, doing laundry, and that stuff, and now I feel better able to care for myself physically, too, though part of our training involves situational awareness—if we come upon a scene that looks like it might become troublesome, get out before the trouble can involve us.

“You know what?,” she asked. “I should teach you those moves he taught me to put assailants off balance. You might be able to do something with them if you still train together.”

“Cauldron, no, not tonight,” Rhys groaned. “You had the workout, but I'm exhausted from watching you two.”

“Okay; we'll leave it that if you ever want to learn them, I'll be glad to teach you. Maybe I'll trade you self defense lessons for cooking lessons,” Feyre said slyly. “Speaking of cooking, that leads to thoughts of our small dinner. Are you ready for me to make our plates?”

"Yes, actually. I'll help you,” Rhys said as he got up and went with Feyre to the kitchen. They enjoyed their small dinner of sliced cheeses, Italian bread, and grapes, then watched their TV series until bedtime. Rhys set his alarm, then Feyre settled into Rhys' arms holding onto each other through the night.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

All too soon, it was six-thirty and Rhys' alarm went off, jarring them awake. Rhys turned it off right away and collapsed on the pillow pulling Feyre in for a kiss. “We shared a shower late in the afternoon,” he began.

Feyre put a finger to his lips to stop him. “We really needed to be up earlier if we wanted lovemaking, love. I'm going to go make coffee and arrange for your breakfast. Do you want cereal, toast, and fruit?”

“I suppose,” Rhys grumbled good-naturedly. “I would like to let it be known that I would rather have had you, though.”

Feyre laughed and took clothing to the guest bath while Rhys went into the master bath to get ready for work. She had the coffee made and was finishing slicing his fruit when Rhys came downstairs. Feyre started the toast and laid the rest of Rhys' breakfast at his place at the dinner table. He'd grabbed his phone off the charger and was checking his news sites as he dug into breakfast. Feyre was content to watch him and wake up with her coffee. When he'd finished and stacked his dishes in the dishwasher, he came up behind her, burying is face in her hair for a moment before he finished his grooming for the day. “Cauldron, I do love you,” he murmured.

“I love you, too,” Feyre answered, kissing an arm that was holding her. “I'll miss you.”

Rhys returned upstairs while Feyre checked her own phone for news and her favorite websites as she finished her coffee.

When Rhys came back down, she got up to meet him by the closet where he ostentatiously put on the new scarf and gloves she'd given him for Solstice, along with his overcoat. He was taking the SUV to work this morning to get gas for it on the way home so it would be ready for them in case they got more snow. People in Velaris always had to prepare for bad weather in the winter.

He got his computer bag out of the closet and turned to face Feyre who was watching him carefully. They'd been cautious around each other since their discussion of Feyre's moving plans on Saturday. They were maybe a little more settled this morning, but both of them knew that it would take time to return to the easy relationship they'd had before the discussion. One thing hadn't changed, though. Feyre's goodbye kiss was as searing as always, and he really, really didn't want to leave her. Rhys groaned softly and hugged Feyre tightly, saying “I'll be back as soon as I can.”

Feyre just said softly, “I'd like that,” kissing him again, but gently this time.

After he had gone, she got her own breakfast, showered, cleaned up the baths and picked up everywhere else, then took laundry downstairs to start it. She hoped that keeping busy would help the time go faster, and aside from the housework, there were several books she could read from Rhys' bookshelves as well as drawing she could do. She started by turning on a soft jazz music station from the cable company. Before she knew it, midway through a drawing, her phone chimed, indicating a new text. She was mystified when she read what Rhys had sent. _I guess I should have listened to him when he wanted to make love this morning,_ she thought, assuming that the text was referencing the request that she'd stopped him from making. _I'll help him out when he gets home._

Meanwhile at Starr Technologies:

As Rhys entered his floor at Starr Technologies a little before nine o'clock, he greeted Roger and asked him about his calendar for the day, since he planned to leave at noon. He'd put his plans for Monday and Tuesday as well as listed Wednesday and Thursday as off-days on the calendar when he'd remote accessed the office on Saturday, noting that some appointments would have to be moved, but they weren't of major importance and all involved in-house people. Roger had found the schedule changes and reported to Rhys that he was almost finished rescheduling and that it was all going smoothly. After exchanging news about their Solstices, Roger told Rhys that Mor was waiting in his office and returned to his duties.

“Just the person I needed to see,” Rhys said, remembering that he needed to arrange the meeting with himself, Feyre, and Mor, then dinner at Sevenda's, adding Andi into that event.

“Cousin, hurry it up. I **am** trying to accomplish things today, you know,” Mor called out to him. “Your coffee's already in here, thanks to Roger.”

Rhys just waved at Roger and put a long-suffering expression on his face before entering his office and closing the door quietly behind him.

“Mor, beloved cousin, how did you know I would need to see you first thing this morning?,” he asked, walking into his office and setting his computer bag on his desk.

“Because I needed to see you first thing,” Mor instantly responded. “I didn't want to do my part through texts, so here I am. What did you need?”

Rhys explained that Feyre was thinking of moving to Velaris and that he thought a meeting between Mor, Feyre, and himself would be beneficial to Feyre's job search because he wanted Feyre to understand that she had many business capabilities outside of the position of administrator. If Feyre understood that, she would have other options aside from administrator positions when she began her job search. He went on to ask Mor if she had time on her schedule either Monday or Tuesday later in the workday for a meeting, telling her that it would likely take a half hour or forty-five minutes, then went on to say that Feyre wanted to take Mor, Andi, and himself for dinner at Sevenda's, so scheduling the meeting and dinner meant that it would need to be a day that Andi could meet them after the meeting, either at Starr or at Sevenda's.

“I know it's short notice,” Rhys said, “but this all came up on Saturday, so...can we work with it?”

“Certainly,” said Mor. “For Feyre, I'll move the world. You know that, Rhys. Both Andi and I can be available for dinner either day. As to the meeting, name the day; right now both days' late afternoons are free on my calendar.”

“I'm only working until noon today and tomorrow, then taking Wednesday and Thursday off and returning on Friday, the second of January. We start the Kallias Insurance roll out the fifth and all the plans are set for it. On the Software Development division, that operation is going really, really well where almost all of the management people for it are in-house already. The new IT manager will begin training with Azriel on the twelfth of January. It's more a matter now of the headache of rearranging offices and desks to reflect the layout we need. We might need to think of a building expansion one of these days,” he commented. “I'm just bringing you up to date on my schedule and the other projects, but, back to our meeting and dinner, let's do it tomorrow, okay? Maybe four-fifteen for the meeting and have Andi meet us here at five o'clock or at Sevenda's at five-thirty, whichever is easiest for her. The way the lovely Feyre Darling put it, we'll have the meeting 'in whoever wants to show off their office the most's office.' Do you want to flip for it?”

“Just a second,” Mor replied, getting out her phone and entering the meeting on her calendar and making a note to call Andi as to dinner. “Okay. On the office, let's do it in yours. It's much more executive-like,” she smirked. Everyone knew that Mor had decorated her office space for her mental and physical comfort, not being concerned with the niceties of her position. As a result, the décor and atmosphere were brightly comfortable for her. Rhys' office was sleekly sophisticated, reflecting his tastes, but also reflecting what many would consider suitable for a CEO.

“All right, I'll tell Roger to expect us tomorrow at four-fifteen,” he said while sending the meeting time and participants to his calendar where Roger would pick it up. “Now, what's on your mind?,” he asked curiously.

“Well. You might not be aware, as besotted as you and Feyre were with each other Friday night,” Mor began, throwing up her hands in defense at Rhys' expected reaction and hurrying on, “as you both certainly should be, mind you, but you both **did** make quite the splash in the little pool that is Rita's. I've talked to Cas and Az plus Andi and all of us can report that our phones blew up Saturday with people wanting to know who the drop-dead gorgeous female was who was the object of your attentions. Aside from requests for an identity for Feyre, the questions being posed ranged from was she available, and are you off the market now, to how long has this been going on, and is it serious.

“Whether you like it or not, cousin, you, as the CEO of a major company in town and a bachelor, are considered prime gossip fodder. This is the first time in years that you spent the entire evening with one female, let alone one as beautiful as Feyre is, whom no one at the club had seen before. In that dress. **That dress!** Gods. I'm almost drooling right now myself,” she smirked. “There were no shortage of eyes on her or on the two of you Friday night, even though you were both perfectly proper all evening.”

“I saw that part,” Rhys growled. “I think Feyre was unaware—we had a bit of a 'little talk' about why she would and why she would not wear that particular dress to Rita's, and she said that she didn't care in the least what people she didn't know thought of it, or of her for that matter. I had said something stupid that brought the 'little talk' on, you see.”

“No, actually, I **don't** see, but then I don't need to see, either. Back to the point, though, I'm just thankful that the newspaper and TV stations no longer cover dating stories, for all of our sakes, but people still love to talk, especially about other people. Right now, we've only told people, without giving up a name, that Feyre is a female friend and that's all. None of us answered any of the other questions.”

Rhys groaned softly and put is head in his hands. He swiveled his chair to search the view of the Illyrian mountains out his window, hoping to find wisdom or peace, he didn't know which. “Gods of the freaking Cauldron, not now,” he moaned.

“Rhys, what's wrong,?” Mor answered, concerned for her cousin. _It hasn't been that long since the situation with Azriel had happened; maybe Rhys hasn't wholly recovered? Now this?_ , she thought.

“Please keep answering the way you have been. That's perfect,” Rhys said. “As to what's wrong, this is just a complication that Feyre and I didn't want or need right now.” He was silent for a moment, then apparently came to an internal conclusion, asking Mor, “Can I tell you some things in confidence? I already intellectually know that I'm in the wrong to feel the way I do; I don't know how to shake it, though.”

“All right,” Mor said slowly. “if you are willing to accept that I might have to take a position that you might not agree with. I'll certainly keep whatever you tell me to myself, that I promise. Just know that I love you and Feyre both, but I'll tell you both when I think you are wrong.”

“Fair enough,” Rhys agreed. “Saturday afternoon Feyre broached the subject of her moving to Velaris permanently, and doing it relatively soon. Great, I thought. That's just what I've wanted to happen for a while now. The me that existed Saturday was planning on Feyre working at Starr and living with me in the house if she ever moved up here. As it turns out, she'll be working elsewhere and living on her own for a while, though she wants us to stay together as we are, or rather, as we were before this came up.

“She made this long speech listing all the reasons that it would be best if she worked elsewhere at a non-competing business, and, damn it, she's too freaking right about it. Her position is that she wouldn't be willing to hide our relationship, and if she took a job here that wasn't entry level, the organization would resent the boss' female friend getting a particular job that she hadn't earned just because of our relationship, and that it would be a position that someone already working here might have had. Looking out for us and the organization,” Rhys said, gesturing between himself and Mor. “Trying to prevent a morale problem that doesn't have to be there. I asked her if she had a problem with working for one of us, with being lower on the org ladder, and she insisted that wasn't the case, that, whatever job she took at whatever company, she would be working for someone else.

“She's entirely correct, Mor, but it isn't playing out like I wanted it to and I'm having trouble accepting it.,” Rhys said.

“All right, Rhys. What's the rest of it? What bothers you about Feyre living on her own for a while if you are still dating exclusively? I grant you that some inconvenience might be involved, at least for a while, but what's wrong with accepting her wish and at least trying it? I can understand her position and I think you'll discover that it won't be long before she's basically living at your house and just keeping her own place because she needs to wait a lease out. She just won't be officially living with you until that happens, that's all.”

“I think I had this idealized vision of how I wanted this to go, and I neglected to ask Feyre what she saw happening,” Rhys said ruefully. “A part of me just wants to become settled with the female I love and with whom I want to spend the rest of my life, and I want it to happen as soon as the logistics can be worked out; hang anyone's feelings on the matter.

“I know that Feyre loves me every bit as much as I love her and she has a good reason for not stressing the relationship by putting too much strain on it at once, what with her moving up here to a new city in a new region, resulting in us being together a lot more, while she is adjusting to a new job, new coworkers, new weather, and on and on. I know she's right, again, to give us her place as an escape valve if one of us needs time alone as we adjust, but, damn it, knowing that everything she says is true doesn't make it any easier to put off my dream of us being settled. I just want the dream, Mor, and it's so close I can taste it!,” he said, very nearly wailing.

“Oh, Rhys,” Mor said, coming around the desk to give him a long hug. “You just need some perspective on the matter, that's all.”

“Perspective. There's that word again,” he growled. “It came up in Azriel's situation, too. Have you talked to Feyre already? She likes that word a **lot** ,” he said.

Mor laughed musically and assured him that these topics had never come up in her talks with Feyre.

“Rhys, I want to say something that may change your viewpoint and it may not, but I want you to at least consider it very carefully. When we first met Feyre not even a year ago; imagine that, only eight or nine months ago we met her and look where we all are now. But back to the point, when we met her, she showed you **exactly** how independent she wanted to be. Remember trying to take her to the airport? I certainly remember it. It's very telling, Rhys. She's really come a long way with us as she's learned to trust us. She's a lot more relaxed, but she still needs her independence in certain matters. Can you accept it and live with it? Do you absolutely need her to be gathered in as closely as you've gathered the rest of your family or can you let her fly free, trusting that she can take care of herself, and trusting that she will **always** return to you because you're clearly the most important person in the world to her and she wants to return?

“I realize that you saw a part of this in yourself with Az's situation, and the rest of us have been together long enough to have reached an accommodation with each other as family members, but, truthfully, from what Feyre told me, she has **never** had a family, and certainly not one as closely knit as ours. She may never be comfortable with that level of togetherness. I know that something very traumatic happened to her after she left the Spring Region; she's never told me what it was and I don't need to know, but whatever that poor female has endured in life has taught her to make damned sure she can take care of herself in all ways imaginable because no one else can be counted on to do it for her. Don't try to change that in her, Rhys. Don't try to smother her with care, because I sense that it's the one thing that will make her run.

“You, as our family head, want to take care of everyone, and that's lovely; it really, really is. Feyre, though, may not be comfortable with that arrangement. As I said, she has come so far in relaxing her need for independence just in the months we've known her and she's done it because she loves and trusts you, Rhys. Can you give her the space she needs to come home to you? Love and support her while she walks the walk that only she can do? You cannot do this for her, much as you love her. She has to be free to do it herself, knowing that her new family here is supporting her but letting her do it for herself, cousin.

“In conclusion, I cannot believe what an incredibly lucky male you are, though you richly deserve it. You need to see the good that's going to happen in Feyre's plans as a process, though, not concentrate on the end result. She's absolutely right about the job thing, cousin, and such a freaking jewel for thinking things out the way she does. Did you honestly think she wanted to search for a job when I expect she knew good and well that you'd be willing, even glad, to find a spot for her here at Starr with people she already knew? Get real, Rhys! Job searches and interviews are horrible! She's willing to do that, she's willing to give up her job and a boss that she loves, people that she knows, a city and region that she loves, and she's diving into our world cold. She's doing it for **you**. She didn't ask you to move, now did she? She knows everything it would cost you to do it. She's giving up only slightly less, and don't you forget it, because she won't remind you. She isn't built that way.

“But she's coming here, Rhys! In a few weeks, she'll be living and working in Velaris every day! No more airports. You can see each other most, if not all, days. Does it matter where you sleep? If it does, you're more limited than I thought,” Mor concluded.

“Whew,” said Rhys. “Your presentation was as detailed as Feyre's. But you didn't have slides, either. What's with all these presentations without slides?,” he feebly joked. Very feebly.

Mor just stared at him and flipped him off.

“At least Feyre said she'd send me slides later,” Rhys countered.

Mor stuck her tongue out and flipped him off again. “You're just lucky either one of us is still speaking to you if the absence of slides is what you've taken from these discussions.”

“No, Mor,” he responded seriously. “She's entirely correct and so are you, and I thank you for your valuable insight. You're right to say that I need perspective on all of this and that I need to accept that us finally being settled in one place together will be a process over time. It **will** be a huge improvement to just be in the same city, and I know that. I am feeling better about it, but it will take time. I think you hit on something, though—that I can't take care of everything for everyone, much as I'd like to. Between Az and Feyre, I think that I'm finally seeing that I need to set you all free and have a much more egalitarian relationship where we all love and support each other with less of a leader thing going on. It'll take time to adjust, though, but I will try.”

Mor hugged him again and told him softly, “You won't be sorry, Rhys. We're all like a flock of birds that will fly in our own individual patterns, but we won't ever be leaving the nest for good. You can trust that in all of us, but especially Feyre. You just won't have to worry about us as much, that's all.”

Mor looked at him and rose to leave for her own office. _I've said all I can say for now_ , she thought. _I hope he can adjust without screwing up what he has with Feyre. Together, they're everything each other ever dreamed of in a partner if Rhys can just let her be free._

Rhys resumed looking out his window for a time, gradually calming himself. Mor had apparently asked Roger to bring him more coffee, because he unobtrusively delivered another cup and took the empty cups away. Rhys thanked him absently, continuing to gaze at his beloved mountains. With a will, he finally turned back to his desk and picked up his phone to text his Feyre.

_'Love, I love you, need you, and miss you so very much. I'll leave around noon and be home as soon as traffic allows. Draw something today, okay?'_

Rhys returned to his work with a vengeance. His talk with Mor and subsequent thinking had taken much longer than he expected. He plowed through all the necessary reports for the day, making notes and contacting the relevant people to request follow-ups for report items that needed it, then had a few meetings with department heads. Rhys was pleased to have good reports on Azriel from both of his department managers. They both told him that he was settling into both of his teams and that he was a very constructive presence in the departments. That relieved Rhys greatly; he debated whether or not to text Az, then decided that his team leaders should be the ones telling him, so he abandoned the idea. He did tell both managers that someone should let Azriel know. They assured him that they would be giving him a short review after thirty days on the new jobs, which was standard operating procedure at Starr, and it would be covered at that time. Rhys reminded them that Az would be training the new IT manager for two weeks beginning on the twelfth of January, and they concluded their meeting.

After talking over plans for the next few days with Roger, Rhys stopped by Mor's office to let her know he was leaving for the day and to thank her once again for their talk. She came around her desk and gave him a smile and a hug. “Just go home and love her, Rhys. Gods know that she loves you every bit as much as you love her and that both of you are made for each other.”

Traffic was light so Rhys was home by twelve-thirty. He entered the house, hoping that Feyre was in the living room, but she wasn't, nor was she in the kitchen. He went upstairs, thinking she might have gone back to bed after he left that morning, though he knew she never would have slept in this late. However, he did find her in bed. Waiting. For him.

“Are you all right, my love?,” he asked.

“Yes, but I could be even better if you joined me,” she said in what he'd come to think of as her bedroom voice.

“You don't need to ask twice,” he answered immediately, taking his tie off and unbuttoning his shirt on the way to the closet. He rapidly finished and climbed into Feyre's waiting arms as she stretched against him.

“Can you just hold me and we'll talk for a little while?,” Rhys asked.

“Of course,” Feyre answered, pulling back to examine his face, then gathering him back in as closely as she could. “What's bothering you?”

“I feel terrible and I won't even begin to feel better until I give you the apology I owe you,” he said seriously. “I've been totally selfish and I didn't respect what you were giving up to move up here. I didn't consider what you might need, especially after leaving your Adriata life. All I was considering was what I wanted to have happen and I wasn't willing to wait for it until you were ready. I'm really sorry, Fey. I don't deserve you and I let you down. I want you to know how happy I am that you're willing to come here and I will honor all your plans in truth, not just putting a good face on it. I will help you however I can in your job search, in your move, and once you get up here. When you think the time is right, just know that this is your house, too, as is anything in it, including me. I love you more than anything in the world, and I will cheerfully spend the rest of my life proving it if you'll let me.”

Feyre had teared up during his words and he gently kissed her tears away. “Oh, Rhys,” she said hoarsely. “You already have me. Do you not know that yet?”

“I'm beginning to see it, love, but I still find it hard to believe. I'm terribly afraid that I'm going to make the mistake that will drive you away. That in loving you as much as I do, that I'll smother you with it, that I'll make you feel trapped. Please, promise me that you'll tell me to back off if I'm smothering you. I'm genuinely proud of your independence and I want you to always have it.”

“I'm glad you accept my position on a new job,” Feyre said slowly. “That position is non-negotiable for the reasons we spoke of the other day. I hope you will understand one day, but I know that today is too soon for that. It's a position I took for you, your family, and your company, and too many people will be hurt if I budge on it.”

“The thing is that I do understand it, and I couldn't be more grateful for your foresight and sensitivity in seeing what I was too blind to see,” Rhys responded. “It's another case of me wanting what I want right away. I should have learned from Azriel's situation that I can't coop people up, even family members, if they want other goals. I've kind of been keeping them in the company, even though all of them are exceedingly valuable in their roles, because it's a way to watch over them, protect them in some measure, but that's only fine if they want it that way. I'm seeing now that I need to let that go entirely, let everyone be more equal—and that means that they all need and deserve more freedom than they've had. As do you.”

“On the housing position, there might be another alternative that I thought of this morning,” Feyre said. “I want you to know that I love you every bit as much as you love me, and I value the relationship we've built just as much as that. I want it to go on successfully for the rest of our lives. The reason I wanted to have my own place for a while is to lessen the chance that the stress of having me invade your city and your home will cause damage to the relationship. If we had a second place that one of us could retreat to if we were getting on each other's nerves too much, it might be beneficial. But what do you think of this proposal? What if I were to move in here as soon as I can get a job and sell my townhouse, and you would agree to accept that I do need to get a separate place for a while if we're seeing too much stress on the relationship? I'm not kidding, love; I will protect **us** as much as I will protect **you**. You would have to agree to that one condition and it would be invoked only if there's too much stress.”

“I will wholeheartedly agree to that condition, my love. I, too, want to take care of **us** for the rest of time,” Rhys said instantly.

Feyre simply said, “Then love me, I'm yours.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.
> 
> TW for sexual behavior between consenting adults.

Rhys was tender during their lovemaking this time, to a fault. Feyre gently stopped him midway through their foreplay to let him know that she wanted to actively participate.

“I understand what you've told me, Rhys, and that you want to make love to me to show your love. I get that and I love you for the sentiment, but this is my chance to show my love for you with lovemaking, too. I don't mind waiting a few minutes to do my thing; we do that all the time. What I do mind is being a bystander for all of it. Believe me, you make me feel spectacular things with your lovemaking—I can't believe how good you are, in fact, but no matter how good it is to receive your lovemaking, it is so much better for me when I can also participate by showing my love for you. Please let me.”

“I didn't think again, Feyre, and I'm sorry. Yes, in fact, I want you to work your magic alongside of me. You're the one who showed me what love like ours combined with sex could be, so why would I turn that down when it's just about all I think of any longer? I guess I was trying to make up for the way I considered your plans and didn't think about what you needed. So I pretty much did it again.”

Feyre tenderly kissed him and placed one of his hands on her core, asking him if he could find some way to amuse himself there while she gently took his member in her hand. They soon resumed their lovemaking with a passion, both of them fully satisfied when they had finished.

They took quick showers, then went downstairs, where Feyre continued with the laundry while Rhys set about reheating the leftovers from their takeout lunch on Sunday afternoon. He got them glasses of ice water and took them to the dinner table as well as silverware and various sauces to add to the Chinese food if they wanted. He quartered some apples to round out their lunch and called Feyre to the table. She emerged from the laundry room with a pile of folded clothing that she set by the stairs; he could hear the clothes dryer humming.

“You've been busy this morning, love,” Rhys commented.

“Not all that much,” replied Feyre. “I wanted to work in solidarity with you while you were at the office toiling away, so I found a few little things to do, especially after I got your text. I had assumed that it meant that I should meet you in bed when you returned home, but now I think that wasn't what you were saying with it at all, was it?”

“No, but your welcome was certainly novel and it did save us some time,” he said while wiggling his eyebrows. “The text was saying that I've been thinking and I realized what an ass I've been since we talked on Saturday—I wasn't just a normal prick. I was a total ass and I regretted it. I was glad to be able to apologize to you upstairs.”

“Your apology is accepted, Rhys, and I thank you for letting us clear the air. I'm so glad that we're able to talk things out, especially before they become large problems.”

They ate lunch, talking over plans for the remainder of the week. Rhys told Feyre that the meeting with Mor and dinner at Sevenda's would be the next day, and that they should leave the house at three-thirty or so. He also cautiously told her that the other family members had gotten plenty of questions about Feyre and about Feyre and Rhys as a couple over the weekend.

“All of them thought it best to just say you are a female friend and let it go at that. They've not given out your name or given out any relationship details. It will hopefully die down since we'll rarely be at Rita's and I've never had questions after we've gone to restaurants and met people. I just wanted you to know.”

Feyre took the knowledge in stride, telling him that he had to be one of the most eligible bachelors in Velaris, given his appearance, personality, and position in a major company which he owned. It was only natural that people would talk about anything public that he did. That would inevitably splash back on Feyre and his family, but if all they did is gossip, she could shrug that off. “I've checked into that restraining order I told you that I have against my ex; as it turns out, the various regions have reciprocal agreements for restraining orders. I will present my paperwork to the Velaris police when I move up here so it will be in place here if I need it, though that applies to just him. That's all I was worried about. That, though, and my training should help me stay safe if anyone gets too overeager to meet the vixen with the wild Adriata ways,” she smirked. “It's just a damned good thing we didn't go looking for the sex place at the club. Imagine what they'd say to that.”

“Smartass,” Rhys said, laughing.

“Picture,” Feyre replied framing her face with her hands. “Dictionary.”

“I know. You told me that I could find it there, but I forgot for a moment,” Rhys laughed again and picked up the dishes to load the dishwasher while Feyre got the last load of laundry out of the dryer to fold.

She took the laundry upstairs, remade the bed, and picked up the bedroom and bath, then met Rhys in the living room. He asked her if she'd had a chance to look at the room they wanted to turn into a studio while he was gone.

“I did,” Feyre replied. “It should make a very nice studio with some work. Do you want to go look and I'll tell you some of what I thought of to do for it?”

“Sure,” Rhys replied. “I can also arrange for you to talk to the contractor on Wednesday, so you can finalize the plans.”

“Wednesday would be good,” Feyre considered. “Let's go see it together and we'll see how much is a good idea to start with.”

They held hands going upstairs and went into the unused room. Feyre thought to ask Rhys why he hadn't turned it into a home office already.

“I have a perfectly good office at work for that,” he replied. “There is a file cabinet in the closet that stores household papers and desk supplies that I need here, but that's all I've ever needed. If I have to work from home, I can use the computer and my phone downstairs where it's more comfortable for me to work.”

“I wouldn't need all this space if you'd like part of it to put in a desk and a printer or whatever you wanted, just so you know,” Feyre told him.

“It's something to consider,” Rhys answered. “Maybe someday we will. Right now, though, we're thinking more about your Solstice gift,” he said, winking at her.

“Okay, but I'll ask again in the future,” she told him. “So, the north light is wonderful, and that's great when it's bright daylight outside, but in overcast conditions or at night, there is a need for additional lighting. I'd want to talk to your contractor about what we should install to produce a daylight effect—there are special bulbs for that, so we'd need fixtures that will take them. Maybe they even make dimmable fixtures that will take the daylight bulbs by now; it would be nice but I don't know if dimmable is even possible.”

Rhys was writing down Feyre's suggestions as she gave them so that they'd have a reference for the contractor.

“The walls being a shade of white is already excellent, so we wouldn't have to anything with them, aside from putting some shelving along one wall for commonly used supplies. Maybe two shelves, two feet and five feet off the ground, each one maybe six feet long.

“Then the floor. Painting is messy business and I'm not willing to mess up a hardwood floor, but I don't want to risk us tripping over a tarp laying on the floor. I want to ask the contractor if we can leave the hardwood floor in place, then create a plywood overfloor piece sized to the floor dimensions. We'd glue a dense foam backing onto it and lay it on top of the existing floor to protect the hardwood. We wouldn't need to glue or nail the plywood piece down; it would just lay in place so the floor underneath is undamaged. We can either leave the exposed plywood surface unfinished or glue linoleum to it. The linoleum would be able to be cleaned up a little bit while the plywood alone would not.

“We'd need a flooring transition strip in the doorway to create a sloped transition entering the room, but it would be better than just tripping over an abrupt ridge when you transition from the hardwood flooring in the hall to the plywood overfloor. We might need them for the closet area, too, where the doors are pull-out, rather than sliding doors. The flooring is the big thing to me, because I want to protect the hardwood floor. If we can't do that without a tarp, we'll wait to create the studio.”

Feyre stopped and looked at Rhys. “I'm seeing that this is a lot of work, Rhys. I'm happy to wait before we think about doing it.”

“The lighting is the only major work where it's electrical, and even that likely isn't that big a deal, work wise, even though even I can see that it would make or break a studio. You present a unique solution for the floor problem—you continue to amaze me, Feyre. That should actually work if the plywood pieces can be assembled in the room. As one piece, the floor overlay wouldn't fit through the door. I can't see why it wouldn't be able to be done that way, though. We'd foam the back of each piece of plywood, lay it on the hardwood, then tape the topside with flooring tape along the seams. Glue linoleum on top, then the transition strips can be tacked down. The shelves are also a piece of cake, especially where you know exactly how long and where you want them to be. Do you want to do anything with the closet?”

“I might keep canvases there, but nothing needs to be changed to do that,” Feyre replied. “I might get a larger-sized utility cabinet with adjustable shelves to stick in a corner, and maybe a little arts and crafts cart on wheels—you've seen them? They have two or three open bins?”

“What do you want to do about easels and other supplies?” Rhys asked.

“I haven't gotten that far,” Feyre confessed. “You and Alis got me so much stuff for Solstice and my birthday plus I have some stuff at home already. As to the easel, I have one but I'm not sure it will survive the move. It was used when I got it and now it's very used, poor thing. I'll have to decide when I move if I want to retire it and spring for a newer one.”

“So, Wednesday, if we can see the contractor, we'll do that, but then let's go to Ressina's shop in the Rainbow,” Rhys offered. “You can meet her and look around the place. Somewhere in there, we'll get lunch at one of the food carts. If we go to Ressina's shop, it might give you an idea of what you'd want in an easel and you might find other materials you positively have to have.”

“That sounds fun, love; I'd like that,” Feyre said, kissing him. He pulled her into a hug, both of them taking in the scent of the other. In time, they eased apart and went back downstairs.

They spent a leisurely rest of the day reading and watching TV before going upstairs a little early to bed.

Because she'd gotten such a good night's sleep, Feyre woke just before the alarm went off Tuesday morning and she was able to turn it off before it rang. She eased out of Rhys' arms without waking him and refreshed herself in the bath before returning to bed and gently kissed Rhys awake. He put his arms around her and gathered her in close, burying his face in her hair as he came awake. Feyre began planting little kisses up and down Rhys' neck as she let her hands roam wherever they wanted. She was aware of his growing erection and looked at him questioningly to be sure he wanted to wake up with lovemaking. His glazed eyes told her what she needed to know, and she continued her ministrations, including taking his member in her mouth and moving on him gently. Rhys had not been idle; he had paid homage to her breasts, nibbled his way down from her ears to her core, then inserted a finger, finding her soaking wet. As they manually worked each other, rising ever higher toward their climaxes, Rhys suddenly pulled her up to his chest and flipped her onto her back. He entered her core slowly, so slowly, and began moving in her as she moaned softly.

“Gods, Rhys. Every single time you feel so good entering me. Then you move and I can't think anymore. I just feel.”

“Me, too, love,” he responded, moving more intensely. They came together this time, working each other through the peaks and back down. Because Rhys needed to go into work for the morning, they regretfully separated soon after so that he could ready himself and Feyre could handle his breakfast needs.

They came together again in the entry hall as Rhys was leaving. Feyre kissed him deeply and he reciprocated enthusiastically. “I always hate leaving you here,” Rhys said quietly, “but I'll be back as soon as I can, okay?”

“I know, love, and we'll both be fine. Plus, we get to go to Sevenda's tonight. Concentrate on that—I will be daydreaming about it all day!”

Rhys just laughed and kissed her again before leaving. “Don't forget the meeting part, Feyre Darling. You have to endure that before we hit Sevenda's; it's part of the deal we made,” he smirked.

Feyre rolled her eyes, said, “I know; don't remind me, Prick” and shooed him out the door, smiling at him.

Both of them passed the morning by keeping pleasantly busy, Rhys with a nicely normal workday and Feyre by straightening the house and taking her shower later in the morning so that her hair would dry by the time they had to leave at three-thirty to meet Mor. She was drawing another nature sketch in the kitchen when she heard Rhys come in the front door so she went to give him a hug and kiss hello.

“Do you want to change where we're leaving again in three hours?,” she asked him.

“I don't think so,” Rhys replied, “but it depends on a certain vixen not causing my clothes to magically fall on the floor.”

Feyre stepped back while raising her hands and laughing. “I wouldn't dream of it...well, I might **dream** of it, but I promise that your clothes won't come off today on my account. Possibly tonight they might, though.

“Your lunch is waiting in the kitchen; I've made soup and sandwiches for us. What do you want to drink?,” she asked.

“Beer, please,” Rhys said as he hung up his overcoat and scarf then put his computer away in the closet.

They went into the kitchen hand in hand; Feyre dished up lunch and got their drinks and they discussed their mornings. Rhys noticed her sketch book, open to her partially finished sketch.

“Is that a scene from the Summer Region?,” he asked.

“Yes, it's taken from the same general area as the scene I painted for Mor. I love those headlands and the bay they protect.”

“It's beautiful, Feyre. That reminds me. Can you help me remember to get a frame for the sketch you gave me when we go to Ressina's?”

“I'll try to remember, but it's better if I put it on the calendar,” she said, reaching for her phone. “We'll want a photo frame with glass, rather than just a frame, so the drawing doesn't smear. The fixative helps, but it doesn't solve the whole problem. We'll also likely want a mat—that's the kind of frame within a frame made out of mat-board that you sometimes see. We need to cover the sketch paper edge that was cut from the book.”

“I'll defer to your expertise in this matter. I still have a whole lot to learn about your world of art,” Rhys said fondly.

Feyre looked at him suspiciously, thinking that he was teasing her again, but he seemed entirely serious so she relaxed and began picking up their lunch dishes. Rhys joined her so it was a quick job; they started the dishwasher and retreated to the living room with ice water.

Rhys pulled out his video game console and loaded a game that could be played by partners cooperatively. He asked Feyre if she'd like to try playing, thinking that he'd just play the single player mode if she declined.

“Sure,” said Feyre, “if you'll explain the game and what I need to do—and be patient with a newbie,” she winked as she spoke.

Rhys explained the game and told her what the buttons on the game controller did for this game. He told her how the beginning of the game would go and suggested a strategy that they try to use to gain progress in the game.

The game began, and before they knew it, it was three o'clock and time for Feyre to dress for the meeting. They had blamed each other for game lives lost and missed bonus loot chests, of course, but it was goodnatured, and they made plans to play again before Feyre left for Adriata on Thursday.

“That was awesome, Rhys! I can see some other possible strategies for some of the levels, but we can talk about that later. I have to go make myself presentable now. Since there is the small matter of the meeting before we get to the high point of the deal which, of course, is catching up with Sevenda. Next time, I'll skip any deals and just go see her on my own,” Feyre smirked.

“You mean to tell me that you're okay with gaming?,” Rhys asked incredulously. “I've spent all these visits of yours avoiding the console when you're here because I thought you wouldn't like gaming. I'm crushed.”

“No, love; you won't know what being crushed is until I crush you in a game. Just sayin'. You might want to check my phone; it's full of games. I don't really like shooters, but I play a lot of the other sorts of games, mostly casual ones. I've been known to play some RPGs and some adventures from time to time.”

“Oh, good,” Rhys drawled. “You **are** normal, not superhuman; you do have one tiny gaming flaw—we'll never be able to play a shooter together, which is probably much better for me. I think I'd probably get my ass handed to me if we did.”

“Probably so, but we'll never know, will we?,” Feyre asked airily, laughing as she kissed him and went upstairs to change clothes and take care of her hair and makeup.

Rhys and Feyre got to Starr Technologies a few minutes before four o'clock, parked in the parking garage and entered the building through the front door rather than the staff entrance. Feyre was highly impressed with the darkly sophisticated décor, done mainly in black, white, and gray with some red accent pieces scattered around. All of the glass tabletops and the receptionist's desk were a dark smoky gray over black metal and the chairs were upholstered in a patterned black fabric. The floor was a bright white ceramic tile, surrounded by black grouting. The woodwork was blonde hardwood. Somehow all the contrasts just worked, to Feyre's eye.

They walked over to the receptionist's desk, staffed by Karen today who greeted Rhys respectfully, asking him how she could help him. Rhys introduced Feyre to the receptionist, telling her that they had a meeting scheduled with Mor in a few minutes, but that he wanted her to meet Feyre and to know that if Feyre came by, as she might sometimes do, that she had executive permissions. Feyre had no idea what that even meant, but she offered her hand to Karen and told her that she was glad to meet her, smiling at the young female. Karen reciprocated, then opened a desk drawer to remove a magnetic card to hand to Feyre.

“We'll get you an official card in a few days; if we could just snap a quick picture for it?,” Karen asked.

Feyre looked at Rhys questioningly; he subtly nodded at her, so she complied. The picture was duly taken and Feyre filled out a brief information request card needed for the official ID card. When it came to listing a job category, she was at a loss and asked Rhys what her answer should be. “'Business Associate,'” Rhys answered; “Cassian needs to approve the request and he'll be fine with that. Normally, business associates get temp passes like you're holding for whatever parts of the building they are entitled to based upon the nature of their business with us, but you, being here long-term, should have an official card.”

“Ah,” Feyre replied. “Thank you, then, and thank you, Karen.”

“My pleasure, I'm sure,” Karen replied. “It's good to meet you.”

They excused themselves and went over to the executive elevator, using Feyre's card to access it so that Rhys could be sure that it worked properly. “Executive permissions on a card means that you have access to anywhere in the building. A typical card is more limited because most business associates only need a department or two. Obviously, in this business, we have to secure the software people and, to a degree, the IT people from industrial spying so we use this system. I'll give you your permanent card the next time you're up here. Keep the temp card until then, okay?”

Feyre nodded and said, “Thanks for giving me a job category I could use. It flashed into my mind and just freaking stuck there that I should put 'Artist and Sex Goddess' in the blank, so you rescued me. Cassian would have crowed it from the rooftops and never ever let me forget it.”

Rhys choked at her words. “It would have been a beautiful thing to see his face when your request came through with that as a job category. It probably would have rendered him speechless again so he could certainly go up to the roof and try to crow, but no actual words would be coming out of his mouth. Just this huge guy waving a card around. We need to make you a new card with that on the request form and see what he does. We'll get Az in on it so he can film Cas when he sees the form. With your picture. Gods, it will be so awesome!”

“No. It. Won't.” Feyre scowled up at Rhys. “I won't do that to him. Besides, if you will remember, you two weren't in much better shape than he was the morning I met them. It's hardly fair for you two to pull this stunt on him under those circumstances. Promise that you'll forget all about it?,” Feyre asked.

Rhys stuck his tongue out at her, which he very rarely did and which caused her to reach up and kiss him soundly. They parted just before the elevator door opened on the executive floor. “As a personal favor to you and to Cassian, I will certainly not act on it, Ms. Archeron, but I will **never** forget all about it. It's priceless,” he said quietly as they exited the elevator and walked toward Roger's desk.

Feyre just poked him in the side away from anyone's view and continued straight-faced toward the desk as Rhys swallowed a laugh. Feyre was introduced to Roger and they talked for a short time until Mor arrived, saying 'hello' to Roger and enveloping Feyre in a bear hug.

“Feyre,” she cried. “Thank you for coming in today! Let's sit down and talk. Rhys can join us since it was his idea, but I don't know that he's strictly necessary.” She winked fondly at her cousin.

“I **wil** l join you, since it's my office that we're in, but thank you so much for recognizing it,” Rhys said grandly as they entered his office and moved to the informal seating area away from his desk.

Feyre looked around curiously, seeing this side of Rhys for the first time. The décor was very similar to what she had seen in the lobby, though Rhys had a few mementos in various places. She caught sight of her 'Stars Eternal' painting, hung directly across from his desk, so that he could see it whenever he looked up from his work. He had followed her eyes and simply smiled tenderly at her when she looked at him. _She can see what her painting means to me now,_ he thought. When she smiled the smile that transformed her face from beautiful to gorgeous, he knew that she understood, and that it made her happy.

The three of them arranged themselves in the comfortable chairs placed around a low coffee table and made themselves comfortable. Roger had placed water bottles and a serving plate of small savory pastries with small plates and napkins nearby. They each took a water bottle and a few of the pastries, making small talk as they enjoyed the refreshments. After a short time to relax, Rhys began the meeting, stating that the purpose was simply to give Feyre their view of some of her valuable traits that should be emphasized in interviews during her job search. He went on to say that another thought that Rhys and Mor had was that possibly Feyre wasn't even aware of all of these traits, and if they told her about them, she might use that knowledge in her job search, giving her some career choices to investigate that she might not have thought of before, such as going into corporate management. He then turned the floor over to Mor, who was tasked with giving the list of valuable of traits.

Mor went through everything they had observed in Feyre from the dinner meeting at Sevenda's the previous March, then spent a long while explaining exactly what help Feyre had given them in Azriel's situation in a purely business sense, then told Feyre why the help had been so valuable.

“That's pretty rare, Feyre. You may have thought you were helping Rhys and Azriel as people, and you were, certainly. The rare part is your business acumen in the way you analyzed the situation, the creative but practical way you solved it, and speed at which you came to the solution. As it happens, it was solved in three days, thanks to you, when, if left without your help, it might have festered for weeks, wreaking havoc on the staff. That would have created more problems.”

Feyre blushed and tried to minimize what she had done, but Mor would have none of it. Feyre was running into the business side of Mor now, not simply her good friend, and she was finding Mor to be every bit as stubborn, organized, and knowledgeable as she herself was. Mor had her points to make and she insisted on making them, so Feyre relaxed slightly and just listened.

“That brings us to your current situation, Feyre. I would so have loved to have been able to work with you here, but I am forever grateful that you yourself took that off the table. Again, Feyre, your analysis is spot on and avoids a troublesome situation before it even came up, and I'm grateful for you doing so. Your concern for the organization is to be commended, even if, ahem, one lone member of management here is reluctant to tell you,” she said looking archly at Rhys.

“I've told her thank you, cousin,” Rhys said quietly. “Stay focused.”

_Oops, I seem to have struck a nerve there,_ Mor thought. _Good. He needed to make that right with her. I only hope that he truly did._

The meeting concluded right at five o'clock, as scheduled. Feyre thanked both of them for their insights, telling them that she would keep it all in mind when she applied for jobs in Velaris beginning early next week. “I won't promise that I'll look for a management position right away, given that I'll have the stress of moving to a new region and a new city. Between that and a new job, I'm thinking I'll likely stay with a job category I know, but I appreciate what you've told me and will try to make use of it.”

“That's all we ask,” Rhys said. “You should know these things to better evaluate jobs in terms of your abilities. Now, let's find Andi and go get dinner, okay?”

Mor told them that Andi was waiting in her office, having cabbed to Starr when she left her own work at four-thirty, and that they would meet Rhys and Feyre at Sevenda's. “If you get there first, save me some wine and all the appetizers,” she cackled.

They had a wonderful dinner at Sevenda's, full of merriment and love. Sevenda watched over them fondly, marveling at the obvious emotional changes which had occurred in Rhys since he had started seeing Feyre. _He's finally settled, and in a positive way. Ms. Archeron seems much happier, as well. That's wonderful to see,_ she thought.

When Feyre paid for their meal, she and Sevenda had a few moments to talk, and once again Feyre thanked her for a fabulous meal. Feyre herself informed Sevenda that the others had wanted her to attend a business meeting, but that her price for doing so was dinner with Sevenda. “It's rather encouraging that they agreed so quickly,” Feyre said while winking at Sevenda.

“I'm so glad to hear it,” Sevenda replied in her reserved way, smiling at Feyre. “I'm always so pleased to see you, with or without the others, much as I enjoy them. You are welcome any time, Ms. Archeron.”

Feyre wished her a happy New Year and with that, the group separated and went to their own homes, promising to stay in touch with Feyre.

Rhys and Feyre were happy to get home in the evening, although it had been a pleasant day for them both. They changed into comfortable clothing and collapsed on the davenport, content to cuddle and just relax. Rhys told her that the contractor would be by at ten o'clock, so they knew they could sleep in in the morning, to their relief.

In time, Feyre asked if they could resume their video game; they were surprised when they checked the clock and found that hours had gone by, but they made a good team so had made a great deal of progress when they finally shut it off at midnight and went up to bed. They held each other through the night, waking slowly and happily the next morning.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

“Happy New Year's Eve,” Rhys murmured as they woke up the next morning.

“Thank you; you, too. I can't think of any place I'd rather be than here with you for New Year's Eve,” Feyre replied drowsily. She cuddled in closer.

“We're going to be sharing it with the contractor soon,” Rhys noted. “We should probably have clothes on for the meeting.”

“Are you sure?,” Feyre asked. “I can probably get by in your robe. I place first call on it.”

“Cruel, beautiful female. You win. I never stood a chance,” he said dolefully as he got out of bed and headed to the bath.

Feyre laughed and went across the hall to the guest bath. They were soon freshly showered and enjoying coffee while waiting for the contractor to arrive to look the room over and tell them if their hopes for the studio were able to be done. 

He was right on time, so introductions were made and they went upstairs to examine the room. After beginning the description of what Feyre wanted in a studio, Rhys turned the process over to her, simply referring to the notes he had made to be sure they didn't forget to tell him any of the features they had decided on including.

The contractor had built studios in homes before so understood what Feyre was asking to have done, making suggestions concerning the lighting that would make it more effective year round, even in the dark Velaris winters. He was sure that the idea for using padded plywood to protect the existing hardwood floor would work out well. His only question was what color linoleum they wanted used to top the plywood.

“I'll be dripping paint, I'm afraid,” said Feyre, “and it's permanent color, so I think a smooth linoleum with a dark background and a pattern of multicolor spots would be best. That way my drips and spatters won't show up as badly. I'd like it to be fairly sturdy linoleum, too, because we will clean it fairly often and it will need to be able to withstand an easel as well as maybe an office desk, desk chair, and printer setup at some point.”

“Sounds good,” the male replied. “On the wall shelving, do you want any particular wood finish, or should I try to match it to your room door and closet doors?”

“Try to match it to the doors, I think,” Feyre decided. “It doesn't need to be exact, of course, not for this kind of job. If they can be similar, that would be enough.”

The contractor added that to his notes and told them he would be in touch with an estimate on Monday, and that he thought the job would take five to ten workdays, depending on how smoothly the electrical wiring job for the lights went. It was hard to pin the timing down on wiring into an existing house, he said, but it was certainly doable. He thought they should have no trouble in building Rhys and Feyre what they wanted, though.

Both Rhys and Feyre were exceedingly happy with how the meeting went and looked forward to seeing the end result in a few weeks' time. They showed the contractor out and went to the kitchen for more coffee and to plan the rest of their day.

Rhys cooked breakfast while Feyre made coffee and set the table while they talked it over.

“Would you want to go out tonight?,” Rhys asked. “Mor, Andi, Cas, and Az are ringing in the New Year at Rita's. I have no idea what Amren is doing, but I do know that it won't involve clubbing in the least. Or we could go out to a restaurant? Stay in by ourselves?”

“I think Velaris has seen enough of me, and of you and me together, at Rita's for this trip,” Feyre was quick to reply. “We'll take pity on them and stay away from Rita's, if it's okay with you. I would rather just stay in and have a quiet New Year's Eve with the male I love to distraction, given my choice.”

“That's my choice as well,” Rhys said. “What do we want to do for dinner?”

“I can make Cassian's rice dish,” Feyre offered. “We'd need to get just a few things from the store—I have the recipe memorized. You have most of what I would need, though. We could add a salad and bread to it and have ice cream for dessert. If we do that plan, we can also get you food for the next several days so you won't have to worry about grocery shopping for a while.”

“That would be wonderful,” Rhys said. “It isn't too much work for a holiday night, though?”

“Oh, no. It's actually surprising easy, though I add a few things to make it more like Sevenda's rice dish. I had to learn how to blanch broccoli; can you imagine that?,” Feyre smirked.

“Ah, yes. Yes, I can. Cas isn't fond of broccoli, so I expect he left that out of his version,” Rhys laughed.

“If it's all right with you, that's what I would like to do for dinner,” Feyre said. “It takes an hour or so to prepare the dish for baking, then bake it, so it won't be bad timewise, but we should probably get going—Ressina and the grocery store might close early for the holiday.”

“True,” Rhys replied, getting up to start picking up after breakfast. Feyre helped, so they were soon finished and could get ready to leave.

They parked in the parking garage nearest the Palaces and walked across the bridge over the Sidra river that Rhys loved. Feyre thought that the smell of citrus and the sea that Velaris possessed was especially striking today as she breathed it in. She glanced at Rhys to see how he was handling walking over his sister's favorite bridge, but he seemed to be doing all right with it today. She squeezed his hand and leaned against him for a moment, and he leaned down and kissed her hair.

Ressina's shop was located toward the end of the Rainbow that they entered and Feyre was entranced as soon as they entered. As it happened, Ressina was there, so Feyre was able to meet her. Feyre thanked her for all the help she had given Rhys in choosing her art supplies, telling Ressina that they were all perfect for her and much appreciated. Ressina, for her part, complimented Feyre on the paintings she had seen, telling Feyre that she very much enjoyed Feyre's vision and execution, as well as her use of light and color. She told Feyre that she looked forward to seeing more of her work if it would be possible.

“It's a long, boring story, but you've seen all of it that I currently have, except for some sketches and one painting that I did for Rhys after Mor brought the paintings to show you that I had done for them before,” Feyre said.

“Perhaps I can see them after the holiday some time?”

“Probably after I move here in the late winter or early spring,” Feyre said. “I can show you one sketch now, though. We brought it so we can find a mat and photo frame for it.”

Feyre took the sketch out of her folder and handed it to Ressina who promptly began telling Feyre about her ability with lines and, again, her use of light in the candid sketch of Rhys cooking them dinner. They went to the part of the store where the frames were located and soon found a suitable mat and frame so that Rhys could hang it.

Ressina left them to wander the store, looking at easels, brush racks, even finding an example of the art and craft cart Feyre had in mind. Rhys thought he was being unobtrusive in his notetaking regarding the items in which Feyre had expressed an interest, but he was eventually caught out.

“Don't go overboard, love,” she told him. “These are just ideas for now. I haven't made any firm decisions. It will probably take a few trips and some experience with having a real studio until I can figure out what I really need.”

“Can you at least pick an easel?,” Rhys asked. “I want you to at least have that when you have your studio ready.”

“If I had to choose, I would want the easel and stool we talked about and also the cart,” Feyre replied. Everything else we've looked at is really nice, but I would want to think about it for a while. Maybe the brush racks, since you and Alis gave me all of those marvelous brushes.”

“What size of canvases would be best?,” he pursued.

“That depends on the painting I want to do, but it's nice to have a few of the sizes you've already given me,” Feyre said. “You're covered there.”

“Okay, I'm barely satisfied for now,” Rhys said. “Let's buy the mat and frame and hit the grocery store. You make it very hard to shower you with gifts, you know that?”

“Oh, you mean building a studio isn't enough?,” Feyre said incredulously. “Rhys, I've never had such a luxury. You could stop with that alone and I'd be thrilled. I already can't thank you enough, love. But I'll try. You have no idea how much I appreciate this gift. I'll try to make us proud, okay?”

“I'll be proud, no worries,” Rhys said quietly. “I hope, rather, that you will use the studio to paint your truths, to show us your visions, and I hope that you will enjoy doing it.”

They had reached the counter and paid for the mat and frame; Rhys handed Ressina a slip of paper with the easel, the stool, cart, and brush racks decided upon listed on it and asked her to hold them until he could pick them up over the weekend. She readily agreed and told Feyre how nice it was to meet her; Feyre responded in kind, telling Ressina that she adored her store and looked forward to seeing a lot more of her.

They left Ressina's, bought lunch from a food cart on the way out of the Palaces, then went on to the grocery store where they stocked up on food for several days, as well as what Feyre needed for making dinner that night, and headed home feeling as though they'd done their day's tasks.

After reaching home and unpacking the groceries, Rhys and Feyre sat on the davenport talking quietly until it was time for Feyre to begin preparing their dinner. This time Rhys helped by chopping the vegetables, then made the salad dressing they would need. He was actually quite impressed with her cooking style where she was relatively inexperienced. Feyre was as organized in her cooking as she was in business matters, so the dish went together in the time frame that she had expected it would. After setting the kitchen dinner table, they made the salad together, and Rhys sliced the bread while Feyre cleaned the pots which had been used to prepare foods to put them into the casserole. That would leave them less to clean after dinner.

“This is spectacular, Feyre!” Rhys told her after he'd had a taste of the casserole. “I can taste Sevenda's influence in it, as well as Cassian's, but there's something else in it that's all you and it totally works.”

“I added some spices that I thought might work for me, and I liked how it turned out, so now I make it this way,” Feyre said diffidently. “I'm really glad you like it, too.”

“I do. You ought to tell Cassian sometime,” Rhys said. “He likes to know about improvements people make to his recipes—often he incorporates them into the recipe when he makes it. You can tell him you put in Sevenda's broccoli and chicken, but he will never add broccoli, though. Just telling you. But he might do the spices, possibly the chicken, if you tell him about them.”

After dinner and the cleanup, Feyre wanted to do a load of laundry to prepare for leaving the next day, so that was started and they picked up their video game, playing while the laundry was done. As soon as that finished, however, they retreated to the bedroom to celebrate the holiday in their own special way. They weren't aware of when New Year's Eve became New Year's day, but then, that wasn't the goal.

New Year's day dawned clear and bright, waking them around nine o'clock. Because they had to leave for the airport at ten-thirty, they had precious little time for much beyond the necessities of getting Feyre ready to leave. She did mount Rhys' sketch in its new mat and frame so that he could display it as he wanted, and she started the remainder of the laundry so that his laundry would be caught up.

Rhys made breakfast while she packed. She was leaving most of the cold weather clothing and her Night Triumphant dress plus her new cloak here so that she only took one suitcase back to Adriata. Her new art portfolio from Rhys would be going with her as she couldn't bear to part with it. After packing her art supplies away in it, she took it down to the entry hall, then took a very quick shower and readied herself for the trip. Rhys came upstairs as she was braiding her hair and just watched her, soaking up the time he had with her.

“It won't be long, my love,” she said softly. “I'll see to it, one way or another.”

“Can I come down to Adriata next weekend?,” Rhys asked just as quietly.

“Of course—you're always welcome. This weekend I want to get my resume together and start the job search, but next weekend I'll be free. Let me know when you'll be arriving, okay?” She came over and sat by him on the bed, putting her arms around him and kissing his cheek. “Thank you for the best birthday, Solstice, and vacation I could ever have,” Feyre murmured. “I love you so very much.”

Rhys took her into his arms and spent moments drinking in her scent, savoring it, just as Feyre was drinking in his. “I love you, too,” he told her quietly. They kissed deeply one last time before taking Feyre's suitcase downstairs and leaving for the airport.

It was busy and crowded at the Velaris airport, leaving them no time or space for their goodbyes. They made do with a deep parting kiss and a long hug before Feyre had to enter the Security area. She turned back and waved at Rhys before rounding the corner, but it was so crowded around the area that she didn't know if he saw it or not. She hoped so.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

Third interview (with Melissa Whitmire, CEO of Big Mountain Publishing) (16 February):

Feyre dressed carefully for her interview, wearing a navy blue suit with a lavender silk blouse and low heeled navy blue pumps. She wore little makeup, deciding that only blush, mascara, and lip gloss were in order. Her hair was freshly washed, dried and braided. Her only jewelry was her watch and her ring from Rhys, which she rubbed for good luck or maybe for comfort to ease her nerves. She had really liked what she had learned of Big Mountain Publishing and enjoyed her prior interviews with Human Resources people, as much as you can enjoy a job interview, at any rate. They seemed more like conversations than interviews, what with the interviewers encouraging her to ask whatever questions she had about the duties of administrative assistant to the CEO, Melissa Whitmire.

The personnel people were very outgoing and congenial, as well as being determined to find the best candidate for the job. Still, the process was grueling and had taken six weeks since she had initially submitted her application in early January. For the first two interviews, she had flown to Velaris only for the day, returning to Adriata after early dinners with Rhys. This time, given the importance of the interview, she asked Rhys if she could fly in the night before the interview and stay with him, flying back to Adriata that afternoon after the interview. He readily agreed and picked her up at the airport yesterday evening. Feyre didn't think anyone else even knew she was in Velaris, which was what she wanted until this interview was over. They spent a quiet evening together cuddling on the davenport. Just being with Rhys went a long way toward calming her nerves, Feyre noted. _I could use him here right now,_ she thought, then mentally shook herself. _You can do this. You know you can, so calm down and show them what you've got._

Taking a last look in the mirror, she went downstairs in Rhys' home and gathered her purse and phone, then arranged for a cab. It arrived shortly and she gave the driver the address of the publishing company. All too soon, they arrived, and, after paying the driver, she went into the building. Feyre greeted the receptionist, telling her her name and that she had a meeting scheduled with Ms. Whitmire for ten o'clock.

“Oh, yes, I see it right here on the calendar,” said the receptionist. I'll call Ms. Whitmire's secretary and she'll be right down to take you upstairs. Please have a seat in the seating area just behind you.”

Feyre thanked her and sat on a small settee, trying not to look as nervous as she felt. It was a matter of only a few moments before a tall, impeccably dressed female approached her and spoke in a friendly voice. “Ms. Archeron? I'm Calla Stone, Ms. Whitmire's secretary. I'll take you up to meet her if you'll come this way.”

Feyre greeted her and gracefully rose to follow her to the executive elevator where they quickly rose to the top floor. Calla introduced Feyre to Ms. Whitmire and excused herself to return to her desk. Ms. Whitmire was a lovely female of about fifty years with graying blonde hair, striking green eyes sharp with intelligence, and a warm smile. Feyre thought she was equally as personable as her Human Resources people had been. _Possibly it's a trait this company cultivates,_ she thought. The interview proceeded along normally expected lines until Ms. Whitmire posed what Feyre originally took to be a hypothetical question.

“Let me ask you how you would proceed with this dilemma,” she began. “Let's say that the company has a mid-range author that we would like to keep because we like the author's work and think he will be very successful over his future. It would be good business for us to keep him. With his latest work, let's say we're having trouble creating art for the book that he'll agree to. We have a fabulous in-house art group and the author and artists have worked well together in the past. This time, though, let's say that we're having trouble seeing his vision of how he wants the characters and scenery to look, even though the artists have had a chance to read the manuscript. Since the artists aren't seeing his vision, they can't produce what he wants to see in the cover art. We need both front and back cover art, which is the big sticking point, we need a map of his world, and small drawings to place on the first page of each chapter.”

“Have all of your artists read the manuscript?,” Feyre asked.

“Yes,” replied Ms. Whitmire. “That's standard practice. Ordinarily it helps them in creating believable art that satisfies the author and satisfies us from a marketing standpoint.”

“My first suggestion, then, would be to have a meeting between the author and your lead artist to see if any of the submitted art can be made to be acceptable to the author.”

“I mediated such a meeting, along with my head of Human Resources who is wonderful at solving conflicts. It was not successful.”

_Oh gods. This is a freaking_ _ **real**_ _situation,_ Feyre thought.

“All right,” Feyre said as she thought quickly. “What I would try next is to bring on a new artist that has **not** read the manuscript or any real publicity about the plot or nature of the book and have the author meet with the new artist, along with a trusted associate of yours. Have the author verbally describe one single character as he sees this character in his own mind's eye in as much verbal detail as possible and see if this artist can create acceptable art based solely on his description. If this method works, then that's your answer for any of the troublesome art for this particular book, although readers may point out that his vision doesn't match what he wrote? I don't know if that's a problem for you or for him. If this method doesn't work, you can possibly try a different artist with him, if he'll agree to it. If not, does he have an outside artist he'd prefer to use? Is that possible?”

“I'd hate to go to an outside artist at this time,” Ms. Whitmire said. “We can justify the cost for some of our top tier authors; their book sales will allow us to recoup the cost, but this author isn't yet there. We hope he will be a top tier author for us one day, but it's too large a gamble at this point in his career. One thing we, as a publishing company with many authors, have to consider is that other authors at his level of development would want the same option and that is not financially feasible for any but a few of our guaranteed to be successful authors.

“I hadn't considered your second suggestion, though. That's an intriguing thought. You're saying that the artists have read the manuscript so they may have preconceived notions of how the characters appear to them, and their visions aren't similar enough to the author's vision.”

Ms. Whitmire thought for a minute, then turned to Feyre. “You may have surmised that this is an actual problem we have now, and I would appreciate your discretion in the matter.”

“You have it, certainly,” Feyre replied.

“We have a meeting with the author later today. I anticipate the meeting will be contentious, given the frustration on both sides, because all of us, author and company staff alike, are trying our best and it just hasn't been working, even though everyone loves the manuscript. I don't suppose you can recommend an artist on such short notice?,” Ms. Whitmire asked. “I'd love to give all of us hope for a solution.”

“No, I'm afraid I don't know any artists here,” Feyre responded. “I draw and paint, but it's as an amateur, not a professional at all.”

“Can we at least try your idea as a proof of concept? What we can do is set up a video recording of me describing a character to you and you drawing what you hear me describe. We'll compensate you for your time, and the outcome won't have a bearing on your application status, so don't feel pressured to perform on that account. I just really would like to see where this idea of yours goes.”

“I'm certainly willing,” Feyre answered. “Do you have art pencils and a sketch pad I could borrow? Mine are elsewhere, I'm afraid.”

“Certainly,” replied Ms. Whitmire. “I'm going to have Ms. Stone bring you coffee for right now as we set up the video gear and she'll also bring you pencils and a sketchbook. If you'd like to use the ladies room, it's out this door and down the left hall. We'll be taking the video in here since you know this room already. Is that all right?”

“Yes, of course,” Feyre replied. “I'll use the ladies room right now and be back shortly.”

“Thank you, Ms. Archeron. I really appreciate your help in this matter,” Ms Whitmire said as she made to call Ms. Stone and the visual arts department.

Feyre went to the ladies room to have a moment alone with her racing thoughts. She knew better than to text Rhys or Mor, though she'd have loved to have their counsel. This was far more of a test than she had been planning on, but it was best for these people to see her standing on her own and not assume she was telling people about their private business if they saw her calling or texting. _Nope, I'll text Rhys if it looks like I'll miss lunch, but I'll let these people know what I'm doing and why I'm doing it if I do text him._

With that, she washed her hands and returned to Ms. Whitmire's office to find the video people almost finished setting up a portable camera and lights. They were taking a sound test to establish the audio settings that they needed, so Ms. Whitmire spoke first, then Feyre spoke and they were satisfied that the video would catch everything they wanted it to catch.

Her coffee was waiting on a low table amid a small seating arrangement in a corner of the large office. A new sketchpad and set of freshly sharpened pencils waited next to the coffee. Feyre set her purse on a settee near the art things and sat down next to it, picking up her coffee cup. She really enjoyed the coffee, dark and rich. It settled her down as she watched the workers finishing the lights. One asked her where she would be sitting for the filming.

“Um, Ms. Whitmire didn't bring it up, so I'll say that I'd be more comfortable here, but we may have to change the lights if they need to be trained on me and she wants me to sit elsewhere. It just depends on what Ms. Whitmire needs,” Feyre responded.

“That's cool,” the male answered and went on setting things up. Ms. Whitmire picked up a large book and seated herself at her desk behind Feyre so that Feyre had no view of what Ms. Whitmire was looking at.

”Please stay where you are, Ms. Archeron,” Ms. Whitmire suggested. “I don't want your impression of the character to come from anything but what I say, so I don't want you to see the book I'm taking the character from. I'll be seated at my desk behind you, and the camera will catch us both, as well as any audio from either of us. Are we ready?"

“I am,” said Feyre, placing the pencil tray close at hand and the sketch pad on her lap.

“Gentlemen, shall we begin?,” asked Ms. Whitmire.

The camera operator started the equipment and Ms. Whitmire verbally identified the video as a proof of concept test occurring on the sixteenth of February and naming herself and Feyre as participants. She stated the theory that the proof of concept was testing exactly as Feyre and she had discussed, then they began the test.

Ms. Whitmire had a vibrant, expressive voice which kept Feyre's mind engaged in reproducing using pencil and paper the character Ms. Whitmire was describing with that voice. Twenty minutes flew by when Ms. Whitmire felt she'd exhausted the details she could take from the picture in the book she was holding. She asked Feyre if she had questions; Feyre clarified a few details, then asked for a few minutes to add detail and a few finishing touches to the sketch. She initialed it and dated it then took it over to the desk and handed it to Ms. Whitmire.

Ms. Whitmire laid the book on the desk, open to the picture of the character she described to Feyre. She laid the sketchpad beside it and said, “This is almost frightening. It's an artistic copy, not a photographic copy, but you caught and incorporated every reference I made. I think we proved the concept is valid. If the author can describe his characters **adequately** to an artist who isn't familiar with the characters, if that artist is good enough, the result will be what he wants.”

“May I temper your enthusiasm just a touch?,” Feyre asked. At Ms. Whitmire's assent, she said, “I don't know if you know this, but you have an outstanding voice for describing scenes in detail—your voice was expressive and you provided a lot of detail using specific descriptions, which kept my brain interested in what you were saying. If the author drones, I can't promise an artist can both keep his or her brain processing a droning voice as well as trying to draw what the artist is hearing. Details may drop out. The second point returns to all the detail you provided. Without that specificity in detail, the artist can't begin to recreate your author's vision.

“I would suggest that the author be shown this video; loan him the book you are using and strongly suggest that he look at the picture very carefully the whole time you are describing it to me so that he understands just how detailed he must be and how specific his detailed descriptions must be. For example, he can't just say 'brown hair.' Is the hair dirty or clean? Is it short or long? How is it styled? Is it fluffy or lank? You gave me detail like that and he would need to do that for the concept to work for him.”

“Those are certainly fair points, Ms. Archeron, and I will use them. I like the idea of using the video and book picture, plus your picture, to demonstrate to him his part in the success of this venture. It teaches him that if he fails to do his fair share of the job by describing his vision properly, the artist cannot possibly know what he wants to see. That's why having artists read the manuscript normally helps in creating the artwork. I don't know what went wrong this time. We really do have a fine artistic staff and they've all tried their best, but there seems to be a mismatch in the impression the characters leave in the book and the way the author sees them.

“Well. That's a problem for this afternoon, but I feel much better about solving it. Thank you so very much for your insight and your art, Ms. Archeron. The art is copyrighted to you and all rights reside in you. If you'll stop by Ms. Stone's desk, she'll have the legal paper regarding that for you to sign, as well as what I hope is adequate compensation for your insight, time, and artistic work, though, as I said, you retain the copyright. It was a very enjoyable interview, I must say, and I'll be in touch. Thank you for coming in—it was a pleasure meeting you.”

Feyre thanked Ms. Whitmire for the opportunity and told her, frankly, that it was truly the most interesting interview she'd ever had. After wishing her a good day and good luck with the meeting with the author, she left the office and stopped by Ms. Stone's desk to handle the paperwork. She was free just before she needed to meet Rhys for lunch at a bistro near her present location, so she went outside and walked a block away from the building. Feyre texted him, letting him know that her interview had just ended and asked how to get to the bistro from her location. While waiting for his answer, she gradually calmed down. Not so calm that the voice that purred, “Hello, Feyre Darling,” didn't make her jump, though.

She whirled around and came into Rhys' arms, giving him a quick, modest kiss on the cheek.

“That was a long interview,” he commented, “even for a final one.”

“Let's talk about it away from here,” she said very quietly. “In fact, maybe at home. I want to tell you about it, but I can't risk anyone connected with the publishing company overhearing me.”

“Do you want to get lunch at home?,” Rhys asked. “It won't match the bistro in excitement, but it has the advantage of being private.”

“No, but what if we get takeout and eat in your car? That would be closer, and there's a drive-in right over there. That will take care of the privacy issue and save your time.”

“Okay, we'll do that,” Rhys answered. They talked of other things until they got to his car and were inside with the doors and windows closed.

As Feyre was distributing their food, Rhys said, “I'm dying here. Please spill the story.”

Feyre began at the beginning of the interview in order to emphasize how normal it was, until it became an assessment of a real company situation. Rhys' eyebrows climbed at that, though Feyre had no identifying details as to the author's name, the book title, a book description, or a publication date, so it was a actually a benign situation. As Feyre continued with the narrative, he became astounded.

She concluded with, “So I signed the paperwork, came outside, and texted you. As I was busy calming myself down, you saw fit to scare me half to death by purring at me, and here we are, eating what I think is a great lunch.”

Rhys just laughed. “Given your training, I didn't dare surprise you with a hug from behind, because you'd have dropped me like a brick in the snow and ice, so what else could I do?,” he asked.

“That's a fair point,” Feyre allowed. “I'm glad to see you before I have to leave this afternoon. I'll let you know if I hear any more from them.”

“You're right, that was a fascinating interview. It sounds as though you did awesomely well,” Rhys said. “Call me when you get home tonight? I love you.”

“I love you too,” Feyre said, kissing him deeply. She got ready to leave the car and call a cab to go out to the airport while Rhys had a meeting he had to attend. She'd pick up the few things she'd left at his home the next time she was in Velaris.

After a smooth trip home to Adriata, Feyre was back at her home by six o'clock, totally exhausted. She took a shower, then ate a small dinner. She checked her mail and messages on her phone and found an email from the Human Resources department of Big Mountain Publishing offering her the position of administrative assistant to Melissa Whitmire. It said that the company was hoping she would accept the offer and looked forward to hearing from her. An attachment contained the particulars: salary, benefits, and that kind of thing. Feyre was pleasantly surprised to find that the salary was very close to what she was making now and the benefits were identical. They let her know that a hard copy of the email and attachment was in the mail.

She also found an email from Melissa Whitmire thanking her again for her help with the book art situation. The meeting with the author was very encouraging; he did watch the video that Feyre and Ms. Whitmire had made, looking at the source image in the book as he was listening to Ms. Whitmire's description, then looking at Feyre's sketch after watching the video. After the viewing, his attitude had markedly changed, beginning to see that perhaps he saw his characters much differently than he had actually written them, so the artists were not fully responsible for the impasse over his book art. He still wanted to try the method shown in the video with an artist who hadn't read the manuscript, and the publishing company was agreeable, even though the final art would still have to reflect at least some sense of what the author had written in the book text. They might find an artistic compromise as Feyre had first suggested after all.

Feyre called Rhys, thinking he might be free by then. He was, so they talked for a half hour or so, going over her plans for selling her townhouse in Adriata, moving itself, and exiting her position with Summer Leisure Industries.

“It was a stupid tactical move, I realize, but I gave Alis a heads up in early January that I was going to be moving to Velaris, so she has been thinking over in-house people who could step into my job. I couldn't just leave her with only two weeks' notice,” Feyre said. “I'll give my formal notice tomorrow, and if she promotes from within, I can at least begin training my replacement. If she hires from outside, then she's going to have to do all the training alone or with someone else's admin helping. I couldn't live with myself if I hadn't warned her, though.”

“Congratulations, Feyre! They're lucky to have you with them. Regarding tipping off your boss early when you're job hunting, in this very specific case, I have to agree with you,” Rhys replied. “You and Alis share a special friendship as well as a work relationship.”

“We need to think about what we want to do about me actually moving,” Feyre said.

“As soon as it can be arranged,” Rhys responded instantly.

“True,” said Feyre, “but I have a couple of questions for you. I won't be bringing any furniture other than my standing mirror, and nothing from the kitchen since you have more and better kitchenware. Only my clothing, toiletries, books, music, art supplies, and I want to bring my audio system, if that's okay with you. Do we want my TV? We could put it in the bedroom or the studio.”

“Yes on both counts,” he answered. “You have a killer sound system and it might be nice to have a TV in the bedroom.”

“Okay. The townhouse goes on the market tomorrow plus I'll give Alis my formal notice at work. I'm going to donate what I can of the stuff I don't want, then just get rid of the rest of it. I should be able to move in two to three weeks. I won't need to stay down here until the townhouse sells and the deal closes. My Realtor can arrange for a moveout cleaning and yard upkeep in the meantime. I'll have a mover bring my stuff up there and I'll drive myself. How does that sound to you?,” Feyre asked.

“Fine, but can I ask a favor?,” Rhys asked. “Can I fly down the night before you leave and we'll drive up here together? I've heard that it's a pretty drive, and I've never seen it before. This is my chance and to see it with you would add to my pleasure—and probably my art education.”

“You know that it's supposed to be about an eight hour drive, right?,” asked Feyre. “Also, we'd need to stay somewhere else the night before I leave here and all our food would be restaurant food because all the furniture and kitchen stuff will be gone by that night.”

“Feyre Darling, that is not the depths of roughing it, you know,” Rhys teased. “I think we can survive a few days of it if we need to.”

“Fine, Prick. I was just warning you; it's only fair since it's a departure from your normally exalted standard of living. I'll keep you posted on the schedule.”

They ended the call, both of them looking forward to finally being able to be together for good.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.

Mid-March of Year One of Feyre and Rhys' relationship

Feyre has moved to Velaris and is settling into her new life with Rhys as well as her new job at Big Mountain Publishing.

Spring arrived in Velaris on schedule. The days were slowly warming up and fewer storms complicated people's outside lives. There was more energy in the air, probably because people were looking forward to the gorgeous spring season that was finally here. Rhys and Feyre had joined a sports club that would allow them to play tennis on a more regular schedule during the spring, summer, and fall seasons. Both of them were looking forward to that, remembering the fun they'd had playing tennis the previous September.

Rhys had resumed going to his gym and training with Cassian and Azriel at an Illyrian training ring located in Velaris. Feyre often went to Rhys' gym with him as a guest so that she could keep in shape; she was still searching for a self-defense class she could join, so she didn't want to commit to getting a gym membership for herself yet. She would eventually get one if she couldn't find the sort of class she was seeking. Once every couple of weeks, Feyre was able to talk Cassian or Azriel into going through her old self-defense routine from her class in Adriata with her, but she didn't want to impose on either of them more often than that. At her most recent training session with them that morning, Cassian brought up an interesting proposal.

“When you were here at Solstice, you said that you'd really miss your old class when you moved here,” Cassian began. “I asked for a way to contact your instructor. Do you remember?,” he asked.

“Yes, certainly,” Feyre answered. “I thought it was a little strange, but, yeah, I remember it.”

“Not exactly strange, though,” Cassian answered. “I asked for it because I wanted to begin a class like yours up here. Aside from giving you the class you wanted, I thought maybe there would be a use for it for people here. As you've discovered, there are a few basic classes available at the gyms, but nothing approaching the depth and complexity of your class where you were going into the science behind the moves to swiftly determine which one would be best to use in any given situation. It demands a lot more ability on the part of both the instructor and the students. The instructors need to know the material so well that they are able to teach it and the students need to be able to absorb the instruction to the degree that the students have near-instantaneous recall and reasoning in order to decide what moves to use in an attack, then act on it in an instant. It gets fairly specialized, as you've learned.

“Anyway, I emailed your instructor to try to pick his brain on how I might start a class like this one up here, and he was totally in favor of the idea. He sent me all kinds of useful info, then he mentioned that one of his best students was moving to Velaris and that I should get in touch with her and make her an instructor. As it turns out, that would be you,” he smiled winningly.

“Oh hells no,” Feyre sputtered. “I don't begin to know enough to be an instructor! I still need classes to learn for myself! You need someone far more experienced than I. I would love to go to your class, though. Just tell me when and where.”

“Yeah, he said you might open your negotiations with this tactic,” Cassian grinned. “He asked me to ask you for an address for him to send your instructor's certificate in Advanced Self-Defense. He told me that he'd been planning to ask you to join him in teaching his classes and had been testing you for the past year to that end. Remember all the times he used you as an assistant to help other students pick up the moves and understand why they worked in some situations and not in others? He was testing you then. He told me that you were highly effective and had passed the instructor's exam with flying colors. But then you decided to move and Adriata's loss became Velaris' gain. He's very serious about the certificate. I verified it with him. Even if you wouldn't want to get involved with a class up here, you should have the certificate. You earned it.”

“This is a joke, right, Cas? This has to be a joke,” Feyre decided. “Good one!,” she smiled.

Cassian shook his head slowly. “No, actually, it isn't at all. It's the Cauldron-born truth. I see that it comes as a shock, though. Tell you what. I'm working on putting the class together and I have permission from my gym to hold it. As he suggested, I have some volunteers from the Velaris Police Department to act as 'assailants.' Would you be willing to help me with setting up the curriculum, maybe be an assistant if you don't want to instruct?”

“That is much more in my comfort zone,” Feyre allowed. “Though I will get in touch with my old instructor and see what's up with this certificate I didn't even know about.”

“Before you launch into your instructor over testing without your knowledge, ask yourself if knowing you were being tested would have changed your willingness to help your fellow students. He just wanted to be sure you were officially qualified before offering you the chance to teach on your own, that's all. He didn't want to get your hopes up if he hadn't been able to qualify you,” Cassian soothed.

“It wouldn't have changed anything, except to perhaps make me more nervous, knowing I would be watched, but I would like to have known,” Feyre asserted.

“Is your principle worth turning down the certificate that you earned, regardless of whether you knew about the testing or not?,” Azriel quietly asked. “Isn't this a lot like when you receive a job promotion that you didn't seek? In that case, people at work have been watching you and have decided that you can do a job higher up the org ladder. Isn't this the same thing, but there was a test and a certificate attached?”

“When you put it like that,” Feyre said slowly, “I guess there isn't really much difference. I think I expect to be watched for that reason, among others, at work. I just wasn't expecting it in this situation. Both of you are right, of course. I need to get in touch with him—to thank him. And get my certificate,” she smirked. “Thank you both.”

“If you'll help with the curriculum and agree to being an assistant, we ought to be able to launch the class in a month or six weeks,” Cassian said. “Do you have a preferred evening or weekend day you'd want to hold it? I think we'd want one class a week, maybe one and a half to two hours long.”

“No, just work it around whenever you guys go to the training ring. Rhys and I are playing tennis now, but it's informal. Let's get together soon and see if we can make progress on the curriculum. Did my instructor send you anything on that?,” Feyre asked Cassian.

“He did, along with notes. As I said, he's been a huge help and I really appreciate it,” Cassian replied.

“Okay, then we have a great starting position,” Feyre said. “We should be able to be fully ready within your time frame.”

“Were you going to design our logo for our special tee shirts?,” Cassian asked with a grin.

“Um. Well. I hadn't thought about it,” Feyre hedged. “Is it supposed to be clean? I don't do risque publicly.”

“You do risque privately?,” Azriel perked up. “We need to talk.”

All three laughed and Cassian assured her that the tee shirts should be perfectly respectable, suitable for all ages to see and wear. Feyre agreed to attempt a design, asking for Cassian's choice of a name and any design elements he wanted included in the design as soon as possible. That way they could get the tee shirts screen printed, as well as any business cards and other business products printed well before they started marketing the class.

Cassian told her that he would gather all the information that he'd been sent by Feyre's old instructor and suggested that they meet next weekend for some serious planning, to which Feyre agreed. They left it there for the day and went their separate ways, Feyre to do the week's grocery shopping for Rhys and herself, and the males to get lunch and prepare for a night of clubbing with Mor and Andi.

Feyre returned home with much to think about. Rhys helped unload the groceries and put them away, then served them both sandwiches and salads for lunch. Feyre told him about Cassian's proposal, letting him know that she was seriously considering it, especially if she could be an assistant, at least to start with.

“I just don't want to dive into the deep end of being a solo instructor without some experience in setting up a curriculum, planning classes, getting some volunteer 'assailants,' and marketing the class,” she told Rhys. “Maybe later, but not now.”

“It sounds like a great plan,” Rhys commented. “I'm glad this opportunity has come up for both of you. Let the rest of us know if we can do anything to help, okay?”

Feyre assured him that she would, and told him that she and Cassian would probably be getting together sometime next weekend for an initial planning session.

“About next weekend,” Rhys began. “Spring Solstice is Saturday. Does the date ring a bell?”

“Just a very special first anniversary of the day we met,” Feyre replied nonchalantly, “Can you believe that it's been a year already?,” she asked, shaking her head in amazement.

“I'd like to take you to Sevenda's Saturday night to mark the occasion, just us,” he said. “We had a good time the first time we went there, I thought, and it's fitting to celebrate at one of the places we were on the day we met.” he said with a twinkle in his eye.

“Are you sure we can behave ourselves properly at Sevenda's?,” Feyre smirked. “I don't want to embarrass Sevenda by fully celebrating our anniversary there.”

“I could probably get us a private room,” Rhys suggested, wiggling his eyebrows.

Feyre laughed and took his hand in hers. “I promise to behave properly until we get home if you will. Possibly there will be new lingerie involved. You never know.”

"No private room?,” Rhys asked plaintively. “You're doing it to me again! I repeat, you're a cruel, beautiful female who's going to kill me one of these days with your wild Adriata ways. But, all right, it's a deal. Maybe I'll just have to see about some male lingerie myself.”

“Gods. I may have to rethink the idea of a private room,” Feyre said slowly, imagining **that** scene.

“Let me know,” Rhys smirked.

They laughed and cleaned up the lunch dishes before going to play tennis.

A busy work week sped by for both of them. The Velaris Trade Show, in which both Starr Technologies and Big Mountain Publishing were participating, took place that Wednesday through Friday. While neither Rhys nor Feyre had direct responsibilities at the trade show, both of them put in appearances a few times in order to network and to see if any of their workmates needed help with their respective company's exhibit.

By the time Friday evening arrived, both of them were ready for the workweek to end and were most definitely looking forward to their evening at Sevenda's Saturday night. Feyre had arranged to meet with Cassian at the house on Sunday, so she had most of the day Saturday to prepare. She'd found what she thought was a gorgeous velvet gown of the darkest navy blue with long, tight sleeves and a plunging neckline front and back. The gown hugged her form down through the hips before dropping gracefully to the floor in a draping skirt. She planned to wear the silver and sapphire hair combs and bracelet which Rhys had given her, as well as her ring from Rhys. She was hoping to have a suitable effect on him when she debuted the outfit, though she knew it wouldn't be quite as effective as her Night Triumphant dress had been.

As for Rhys, he had made sure that he had his favorite black silk shirt and what he'd come to think of as his Night Sky silk tie, since Feyre thought of it that way, available, along with one of his favorite black suits. After giving his shoes a quick polish on Friday evening, he felt he had his wardrobe in order for the evening. As well as his own lingerie. It turned out that buying it hadn't been the horrifying experience he'd thought it would be. It was kind of sexy to him, actually, since he was trying to imagine Feyre's reaction to the various styles.

After getting groceries Saturday morning, they played tennis for two hours, then got lunch at the sports club before returning home to play video games until it was time for Feyre to take a shower and begin dressing for their dinner, planned for early in the evening. Again, she planned to let her hair air dry in curls, then pin it back from her face with the hair combs, leaving her golden brown curls trailing down her back. Following her shower, she finger-crunched her hair in places to encourage the curls, donned Rhys' robe, and rejoined him downstairs in the living room.

She sat down beside him and took a sip from her water glass. “I'm finished in the bath, whenever you want your shower, love,” she told him, kissing his cheek.

Rhys put down his book and turned to her, putting his arms around her gently so as not to muss her drying hair. He'd learned some things about the importance of leaving hair alone while it was air drying in the past year.

Taking a moment to just breathe in her scent, he closed his eyes and just enjoyed the sensation of the female he loved held close in his arms. They kissed tenderly, deepening the kiss when Feyre's tongue brushed Rhys' lips, asking permission to enter. He granted it, then gently massaged her breasts through the open neckline of the robe.

“I want you badly,” Rhys said hoarsely, “but I want the main event to be during or after dinner when I don't have to worry about messing up your hair, even though I think it's the most beautiful right after we've made love.”

“ _During_ dinner?,” Feyre asked. “Are we back to needing one of Sevenda's private rooms again?”

"We might be,” Rhys smirked. “You decide. Shall we mess up your hair now or at dinner? Your choice.”

“There might be a way to have a smaller event now that will get us by until we get back here tonight,” Feyre suggested. “A way that doesn't mess up my hair. A way that we both find highly pleasurable.”

Rhys grasped the possibilities almost immediately and rose, bringing his Feyre with him. “Are you sure you want to?,” he asked in a guttural voice.

“I'm positive,” she breathed, gently palming his erect member. “Let's go upstairs—now.”

They wasted no time getting to the bedroom, then undressed each other gently before collapsing on the bed, orally satisfying each other for the moment.

“Thank you for loving me,” Feyre told him afterward while they were coming back down. “I'm not sure I could have lasted until we finished dinner—and we are **not** getting a private room at Sevenda's so we can have sex. Sevenda would be scandalized and you know it.”

“It was going to be tough, I don't mind admitting that,” Rhys said. “Gods, but you're magnificent. And look, not one hair out of place. We deserve medals.”

“I think we settle for being able to be in a public place without displaying incorrect behavior,” Feyre said, laughing. “I love you so very much, Rhys.”

“I love you, too. You will forever be the best thing that ever happened to me,” he said, kissing her deeply.

They disengaged with a last kiss for Rhys to shower and Feyre to do her makeup and dress. She gathered what she needed and took it to the guest room to begin dressing.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the universe and canon characters belongs to the inestimable Sarah J. Maas. I am responsible for original characters and this specific plot line.
> 
> TW for sexual behavior between consenting adults.

As she had done in September, Feyre waited until she heard Rhys go downstairs after he'd showered and dressed to go downstairs herself. She'd prepared her evening clutch by putting lip gloss, her keys, and a gift for Rhys to honor the day in it. She just needed to add her phone and she would be ready to leave.

Patting her hair to make sure it was all in place, she took a last glance at herself in the standing mirror and went downstairs to Rhys. Feyre found him in the living room, sitting in front of a small, oblong box on the coffee table. Guessing that the box was meant for her, Feyre reached into her clutch and drew out a similar box, setting it on the table before stepping back to gauge Rhys' reaction to this outfit.

She was not disappointed in the least. He was on his feet in an instant, slowly circling her while his eyes prowled hungrily over her. Both of them could feel their breaths speed up as Rhys' continued to examine her without making a sound. Finally, he hoarsely spoke one word, “Feyre,” and held out his arms to her. Feyre stepped into his arms, putting her arms around him as he hugged her tightly to him. She breathed in the scent that was uniquely Rhys as he took in her own scent.

After collecting themselves for a moment, Rhys stepped over to the table and picked up the box meant for her. “I took a risk, but I wanted you to have it tonight,” was all he said as he handed it to her.

Feyre slowly opened the box and found the silver and sapphire choker that matched her silver and sapphire pieces. She gently drew it out and handed it to Rhys, pulling her hair out of the way. “Help me put it on?,” she asked him. “It's gorgeous and I love it, my love! Thank you.”

Once the necklace was on, she faced him and kissed him deeply, then handed him his box. He opened his box slowly as well, eyes gradually taking in the heavy gold link ID bracelet engraved with 'Rhys' and the date of their meeting last year. He became emotional as he really took in what the gift meant to Feyre and to himself. It meant that she was marking him, as he had marked her in September with his mother's favorite ring. He couldn't possibly be any happier. “I took a big risk, too,” Feyre said almost inaudibly.

She gently kissed away the few tears that escaped Rhys' eyes and kissed him tenderly. He returned the kiss, holding her close while he held the bracelet. “Help me put it on?,” he asked her quietly. She complied, and he kissed her deeply again. He didn't plan on removing it, any more than Feyre ever removed her ring.

“Fey, I don't have words, I'm sorry. What this means to me, coming from you, the female that I adore. I just don't have words now, besides 'Thank you,' which isn't enough.

“It will do beautifully, love,” Feyre told him, holding him close.

It was soon time for them to leave for dinner, Feyre donning her long navy blue cloak against the cool Velaris spring night air. Rhys chose to wear only his suit jacket. The drive to Sevenda's didn't take very long this night and they were soon greeting Sevenda warmly at her restaurant.

“Mr. Starr, Ms. Archeron, what a lovely surprise!,” Sevenda said. “We have a table for you right now. One you will appreciate, I think,” she said mysteriously.

“That's very kind of you, Sevenda,” Rhys replied. “How have you been?”

“I've been very well, Mr. Starr, thank you. And both of you are well?”

“Disgustingly so,” he said. “We're here tonight because one year ago tonight we were here for the first time. We thought we'd like to begin a tradition.” Rhys smiled down at Feyre who hugged the arm she was holding.

“Oh, what a lovely idea!,” Sevenda declared. “You know, I actually remember your first visit last year when I met you, Ms. Archeron. I had hoped to see more of you, and I'm so glad it has worked out that I have.”

“Thank you, Sevenda,” Feyre said while smiling at the older female. “I, too, really enjoy being around you, quite apart from adoring your restaurant. You just make me happy.”

“Thank you so much, Ms. Archeron. The feeling is quite mutual,” Sevenda replied as they reached the table at which she was seating Rhys and Feyre. Their table was a small, intimate one in a quiet corner of the restaurant, for which Rhys thanked Sevenda profusely. She laughed and told him not to think for a minute that she didn't understand the meaning of this night to them. After all, having the anniversary be on the Spring Equinox made it very memorable for her. She didn't mention that this was especially true since she had been watching out for her good friends' son as best as she could after their untimely passing.

Sevenda left them then, assuring that their server would be with them soon. Feyre removed her cloak and gracefully seated herself, putting a small hand on top of Rhys' larger one.

“I like the idea of this tradition,” she told Rhys with a smile.

“Yeah, but you'll do nearly anything to come see Sevenda,” he teased.

“I'm sorry, love, but I could have a worse favorite place. You know that. I could have taken a liking to, say, Rita's,” Feyre smiled innocently. “It's actually a lovely club for club-loving people. I can see why the others like it so well, even if it's not the place for me.”

“I readily admit that your choice of a favorite night spot is far easier to deal with than Rita's would be,” Rhys allowed. “It is even my own choice, so it works out very well for both of us, true?,”

“Are you trying valiantly to snark for a reason or just practicing?,” Feyre drawled. “You need more practice—this is too gentle.”

Rhys just laughed and put his other hand on top of Feyre's, squeezing gently. “No snark, my love. Especially not tonight.”

Their server arrived to take their order, then they resumed concentrating solely on each other. A familiar face in the distance surprised Feyre, though, several of them, in fact. She told Rhys not to turn around now, but several of her former coworkers and Amren had been seated at a table not far away.

“Do you want to go say hi to them?,” Rhys asked.

“No, not right now, love. Maybe we'll stop on our way out if they're still here. You know that Amren's eagle eye told her that we were here when they walked in, so they may come to us, but right now, I only have one person on my mind.”

“Interesting,” Rhys said. “Amren must have met them at the Trade Show. She spent some time there one day when Mor had meetings that couldn't be postponed.”

“I recognize all three of the SLI people, but the only one you might know is Varian Waterson. He's the head of IT and Tarquin's brother. You met Tarquin at the meeting you attended in June about the roll out and we saw him at the steak restaurant in Adriata before we came up here at Solstice,” Feyre explained. “One of the others is also from IT and the other is from Marketing.”

“Oh, sure. I remember both of the Watersons,” Rhys said.

“Ah, Amren must have told them we're here—she and Varian are coming this way,” Feyre announced. “We'll keep it short, okay?”

"Of course,” he replied. “I don't mind.”

“Feyre Archeron! How are you?,” Varian asked as he and Amren reached the table.

“I'm just great, Varian, thanks. Do you remember Rhys Starr from the software roll out last summer? And Rhys, this is Varian Waterson, head of IT at SLI.”

Rhys removed his hands from Feyre's hand and stood to shake Varian's hand and give Amren a quick hug. Feyre also stood and hugged both Varian and Amren. Rhys noticed Varian's eyes widen slightly at Feyre's appearance—Rhys figured that he was used to seeing Feyre in her work outfits, so looking as she did tonight likely came as a small shock. He recovered well, however, and they made small talk for a few minutes before Amren and Varian returned to their table.

“That's an interesting combination of people, I must say,” Feyre said when they were alone again. “And to hear that the three SLI people are going clubbing after they finish dinner is fascinating. I did trade shows all wrong, it seems. I **did** do Sevenda's, though, so that's good, very, very good for me for many reasons,” she said winking at Rhys.

He laughed and they resumed talking quietly until their food arrived. After another wonderful meal, they stopped to speak to the remaining two SLI people, said goodbye to Amren and Varian, then left Sevenda's to finish celebrating the anniversary of their meeting.

As they walked out in the chill air, Rhys gathered Feyre into his side and murmured, “The evening is far from over, my love. Let's go down by the Sidra for a while, all right? I think you'd enjoy seeing the pier at night under the lights.”

Feyre glanced up at him quizzically but agreed with the plan. The pier area was charming in its way, even though it was a working pier for ships of all sizes short of container ships and tankers. Geographically, it was overlooked by the hills behind the Rainbow and had green belts placed in strategic locations to soften the industrial look of a working port. Rhys and Feyre had talked about taking a day cruise on the Sidra someday, but hadn't yet done it. _We should do that in the late spring or early summer,_ Feyre thought. _I'll bet it's beautiful._ She made a mental reminder to herself to put it on her list of things they could do on a weekend.

They soon arrived in the parking area for port visitors, and Rhys parked in the long-term parking area which was meant for parking for longer than four hours and was farther away from the actual pier. This **did** surprise Feyre. “Um, do we really want to park in this part?,” she asked.

“Yes, love, we really do,” Rhys responded with a wink. “We need a good walk after dinner, true?”

“It's a good thing I wore sandals, then. I toyed with the idea of wearing spike heels for about five minutes, you know,” she smirked.

Rhys laughed and told her that he'd have carried her to the pier if need be, even if that would have embarrassed her horribly.

Feyre just took his arm and gently squeezed it. They walked towards the pier, talking quietly and soon reached the entry gate. Rhys handed the guard a card and they were waved through. The guard told Rhys a slip number and gave them directions to it, which deepened the mystery for Feyre. The pier at night truly was lovely, though, so she stifled her urge to ask him what was going on and just enjoyed their quiet walk.

When they reached the slip number that they'd been given, they found a lovely yacht moored there with its running lights on as though it would be leaving port sometime that evening. When they reached a set of mobile stairs serving as a gangway, the mystery began to solve itself for Feyre and she impulsively leaned up and kissed Rhys on the cheek.

“What have you done, my love?,” she asked quietly.

“Something I've wanted to do with you for a long time,” he answered, leaning down to kiss her tenderly. “I hope it will be a first anniversary to remember always. Let's board; we're expected.”

With that, they boarded, greeted the crew who would sail the yacht on a night cruise of the Sidra, returning to port in the morning. They spent hours at the rail watching the city lights as they passed, then watching them recede when they'd left Velaris, heading to the sea. They eventually retired to the cabin assigned to them, a lovely room having an attached bath. They discovered a vase of night lilies on the small table in the sitting area of the room and champagne on ice near the vase. Crystal flutes were nearby, as well as a large bowl of cleaned strawberries and sweet cookies.

The stunning thing to Feyre was finding one of her small suitcases next to Rhys' small bag. “How long have you been planning this?,” she asked. “It's magnificent!”

“I did the serious planning shortly after you moved, but I've wanted to take this cruise with you at night for months now. We'll still take the day cruise later this year, but for tonight, the yacht is ours and the room is soundproof,” he said while wiggling his eyebrows.

“You **do** think of everything,” Feyre laughed. “Soundproofing will be necessary, I'm quite sure.”

“I tried,” Rhys said modestly for once. “I hope I chose the correct clothing for you for tomorrow, but you can wear one of my tee shirts if I failed,” he added, leering at her.

Feyre moved to him and took him in her arms, kissing him soundly. “I had a spectacular anniversary, my love, just in case I forget to tell you tomorrow. You've made me incredibly happy this whole year, and I want to walk your road with you for all time.”

“I, as well, my Feyre. I want to walk your road with you in this world and beyond. I never knew what this kind of happiness felt like until we met and I will be forever grateful to whatever force allowed us to meet.

They slowly moved toward the bed where Rhys asked if he could unzip her dress. Feyre turned her back to him, granting access, then quietly groaned in the back of her throat as he gently stroked her back as he exposed it. He carefully brought the sleeves of her dress down her arms and off, as she stepped carefully out of the dress and laid it over a chair. Feyre removed her sandals while Rhys dimmed the room lights and removed his jacket and tie, laying them on top of her dress.

“You're overdressed,” Feyre said quietly while unbuttoning his shirt and removing it. Her soft hands stroked his chest, his back as his hands paid homage to her breasts. He leaned down and took her nipples in his mouth as she plunged her hands into his jet black hair, drawing them through the silky strands. As Rhys nipped and soothed her nipples, Feyre moved to remove his black slacks, showing her his sheer black underwear, his lingerie, bought just for her.

Feyre stepped back to see her tall, muscular Rhys and marveled at the sight. “Cauldron,” she groaned. “I think I see why you liked my lingerie so well now. You are stunningly sexy.” She returned to him, gently palming his erection through the sheer fabric. Rhys groaned, but when Feyre stopped massaging his cock, he quickly asked her to continue.

“That's such a different feeling, love, and sexy as all hell. It's a **good** thing,” he told her quietly.

They lay on the bed, prolonging their foreplay before finally removing each other's underwear and making sweet love, feeding each other strawberries and toasting each other and their togetherness with champagne afterwards. At some point during their long night of celebration, Rhys rolled onto his back and pulled Feyre on top of him. _Gods of the Cauldron, does he want me to mount him?,_ Feyre wondered. She looked straight into his violet eyes, kissed him deeply, and oh so gently inserted him into her core and began slowly moving on him, watching him the entire time. “Gods, but you feel so damn good, she breathed.

“You, too,” he panted, moving his hands to her hips, increasing the pace of her rhythm. Feyre continued to watch him carefully, looking for any clues that he might have had enough of this position and remembering what he told her that it had meant to him: in his past, it had meant pain and humiliation. She straightened up, arched her back, and braced her hands on his muscular thighs to change his angle in her, causing him to groan in the back of his throat, his face contorting. She couldn't tell if he was in any form of pain, whether physical or mental, but she trusted him to tell her if he needed to stop. Instead, he moved one hand to her engorged clit and began manipulating it as she continued moving on him in the rhythm he had set for them. Both Rhys and Feyre were panting as their climaxes neared. Feyre tightened her core around Rhys and he suddenly cried out her name in pleasure as he came. He continued to manipulate her as he came while she continued working him, bringing her to completion soon after. As Feyre slowed the rhythm to bring them down, she leaned forward to kiss him.

“So that's what it's supposed to be like?,” Rhys feebly joked.

“I think so,” said Feyre, “but I'll tell you that it was the best I've ever had for that position. Maybe it just needed to be **us** doing it,” she suggested. She made no other comment regarding the huge steps he had taken in his recovery to even attempt this position again, let alone complete it, thinking that now was not the time to bring it up.

“I think your wild Adriata ways had something to do with it,” Rhys commented. “You were doing things with it that I've never experienced before. Thank you for showing me what it could be like. I think you're right that we as a couple can do some magical things that could never happen if we were with other people. When I'm moving in you, I feel like I'm in Paradise. I can't explain it.”

Feyre moved to Rhys' side and took him in her arms. “When you're moving in me, I **am** in Paradise. I can explain it., for me anyway. I love you to the ends of the world and we fit together perfectly in all ways, but especially physically. I feel as though we're one being when we're making love.”

They eventually slept for a few hours until the steward woke them with a quiet knock on the door, announcing that they would be docking in an hour and that coffee and breakfast rolls were on a cart in the hall. Rhys thanked him and they rose to dress and eat lightly before going on deck to watch the ship approach Velaris. As the time to dock neared, they returned to the cabin, picked it up to Feyre's standards, and gathered their things to leave and return to their home.

Rhys took Feyre in his arms and told her he couldn't believe how far they had come in the past year—from Feyre rebuffing his attempt to take her to the airport out of fear to pledging hopes of being together forever. “I understand that we **do** deserve each other as long as we're happy together, and gods know that we deserve to be happy, my love, but I will still be forever grateful.”

Feyre kissed him deeply, telling him that she couldn't have said it better as they left the cabin for the last time just as the ship docked in Velaris.


End file.
